IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF CASTORS
Year: 1841

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
STEWART, of Osnaburgh Street, Regent's Park, in the County of Middlesex,
Pianoforte Maker, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Sixteenth day of December, in the fifth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
James Stewart, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority,
that I, the said James Stewart, my exors, adññors, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said James Stewart, my exors, admors, or assigns, should
at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all
times during the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of
Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF
CASTORS;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said
James Stewart, shall cause a particular description of the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be inrolled
in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next
and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in
and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large
appear...
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
James Stewart, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention to consist

page_text: in the construction of a castor for furniture, which from the peculiar combina-
tion and arrangement of its parts possesses a greater degree of strength,
stability, and freedom of motion than has hitherto been attained. And I do
further declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be fully described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the
figures and letters marked thereon (that is to say):-
In the Drawing, Figure 1 represents a section of a socket castor, con-
structed according to my Invention; Figure 2 shows a front view of the
same castor; Figure 3 shows a side view of the same castor; Figure 4
shews a section of a plate castor, constructed according to my Invention; and
Figure 5 shows a side view of the same castor. The nature of the parts
used in each of those castors will be the same, with the exception of the
socket, and the plate a, a, by which the castor is affixed to the furniture. I
shall therefore mark the parts in both castors with the same letters of re-
ference, and in my description I shall only speak of one castor. a, a, is the
socket or plate by which the castor is to be affixed to the piece of furniture.
On this socket or plate a, a, is affixed or cast a tube b, closed at the upper end
so as to afford a good bearing (c) at some distance from the plate or socket a, a.
It is well known to be desirable to have the bearings c for the upper end of the
spindle or axis d of the horns e, e, as high up as conveniently can be obtained,
and for such purpose the tube or support 6 of the bearing c may be longer or
shorter, according to the nature of the piece of furniture to which the castor is to
be applied, depending on the length of tube or support b, which can be conve-
niently let into the piece of furniture to which the castor is to be affixed. fis
a screw to retain the spindle or axis d in its place. On the lower end of the
axis or spindle & the horns e, e, are affixed as firmly and securely as possible,
so as to cause the spindle and horns to work as if constituting one solid piece,
f being the roller of the castor, the axis i of which is carried by the horns e, e,
as shown, and as is well understood. h is a friction roller which works against
the under surface of the plate a, or of the socket a as shown. k is the axis of
that roller.
This friction roller is placed so that its central circular section shall lie
between the spindle d and the plane passing through the central line of the
axis of the roller g, and parallel to the said central section.
The relative position of these parts is shown by the dotted lines 1, 2, 3, in
Figure 4, the consequence of which is, that full effect may be given to the
leverage of the horns e, e, and great freedom of motion to the spindle. The
friction roller is also placed so that the central line of its axis k, the central

page_text: line of the spindle d, and the central circular section of the roller g, shall all lie
in the same plane, the consequence of which is the attaining great stability
and strength, the spindle d being prevented from bending or yielding to the
strains of heavy weights.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do not claim as of
my Invention any of the separate parts herein-before mentioned or referred to,
being aware that castors have before been made having a spindle or axis d
working in a bearing c, and that castors have also been made with horns,
carrying friction rollers, working under the plate or socket a; but in such cases
the axis i of the roller g has been placed in a plane between the axis or spindle
d and the friction roller, the friction roller, or some part of it, being out beyond
the axis g, thus necessarily bringing the roller g of a castor too much und.r
the socket or plate a, thereby losing much of the advantages of the leverage
obtained by longer horns e, e, when moving the piece of furniture to which
such castors may be applied in varied directions; whereas it will be found
that by placing the friction roller h intermediate between the spindle d and the
axis i of the roller 9, a much greater length of horns e, e, with great strength
of castor may be obtained. But what I claim as of my Invention is the particular
combination herein-before described of the spindle d, the horns e, e, and the
friction roller h intermediate in its position between the spindle and the axis
of the ground roller in the construction of a castor for furniture.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Stewart, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Fourteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and forty-two.
JAMES (Ls.) STEWART.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED that on the Fourteenth day of I…no in it