Improvements in Apparatus for Cutting or Opening Tins or Cans and Temporarily Closing Mouths of same.
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 17th Sept., 1888
Complete Specification Left, 15th June, 1889-Accepted, 20th July, 1889
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Cutting or Opening Tins or Cans
and Temporarily Closing Mouths of same.
A communication from abroad by THOMAS ELCOATE, of the S.S. "Isaac Pennock," now
lying at the port of Bilboa, Kingdom of Spain.
I, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S. M.I.M.E. of the Agency for Foreign
Patent Solicitors, 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, and 6 Bank Street, Manchester, both in
the County of Lancaster, and 323 High Holborn, in the County of Middlesex, Civil
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows :-
The invention relates to apparatus for cutting or opening tins of preserved food
and the like, which can also temporarily be used to form a lid for covering the
can while the contents are not being removed, so as to keep out flies, dirt,
etcetera.
The ordinary tool hitherto in use for cutting or opening cans of this description
does. not give the tin a very attractive appearance after the opening has been
effected, and it is found that by this invention, the operation is done much more
satisfactorily.
The
In carrying out the invention, a frame or cover is provided approximately about
the same diameter or width as the can it is desired to open. In the inside of the
lid an arm is pivoted approximately at the centre, having a steel cutter at one end
projecting downwards at right angles to the arm and the cover of the can.
pivot to which the arm is attached may be supported in a collar or bush
soldered to the before described frame or cover, and to the other end of
the pivot on the outside of said cover, a lever handle, disc or the like, is
attached. The ends of the pivot may be square so as to firmly hold the arm and
lever in place.
One way of attaching the cutter to the end of the arm is a follows:
A slit or slot is cut in the end of the arm into which the shank of the cutter
is pressed and soldered, or otherwise secured in place. The cutter itself may be
a thin steel blade, ground to a knife edge on each side, and brought to a point
at the tip.
The mode of action of the apparatus is as follows :—
The cover shaped frame is pressed over the can or box to be opened; the
handle or lever is then rotated by one hand while the can or cover is held by the
other, until the lid is cut through, and the contents can be removed. When
the contents are not being used, the said frame or cover can be placed over the
mouth of the can, thus temporarily supplying the place of the lid which was
removed.
Instead of providing a pivot in the centre of the cover frame, the arm and lever
may be fixed to the frame so that all revolve together.
Dated this 15th day of September 1888.
WM. F. THOMPSON & CO.,
Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Cutting or Opening Tins or Cans
and Temporarily Closing Mouths of same.
A communication from THOMAS ELCOATE, of the S.S. "Isaac Pennock," now lying at
the port of Bilboa, Kingdom of Spain.
I, William PhiLLIPS THOMPSON F.C.S., M.I.M.E., of the Agency for Foreign
Patent Solicitors 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, and 6, Bank Street, Manchester, both in
the County of Lancaster, and 323, High Holborn, in the County of Middlesex, Civil
Engineer, 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 :-
The invention relates to apparatus for cutting or opening cans containing
preserved food or the like, and serving as a lid for temporarily covering the
mouth of the can, so as to form a protective covering against dust, insects, etcetera.
The ordinary cutting tool hitherto generally used for opening cans of this description
does not accomplish its work very satisfactorily, and it leaves a rough and uneven
edge which does not present a pleasing appearance.
It is found, by this invention, that the operation is accomplished much more
satisfactorily and with greater precision.
The invention is best described by aid of the accompanying drawings, in which
Figure 1 is a plan, and
Figure 2 an elevation, partly in section, of the apparatus.
Figure 3 a plan of the rotatable arm for carrying the knife.
Figure 4 a plan of the rotatable arm showing an alternative way of attaching the
knife thereto.
In these A represents a loose lid or cover, preferably of metal, of the same
diameter, approximately, as, or a little larger than the can A¹, so that it can be
placed thereon. B is a boss or collar, soldered or otherwise attached to the
cover A, and preferably drilled or otherwise machined so that the spindle C may
revolve freely therein. E is a radial arm attached to the spindle C on the under-
side of the cover A, having a knife or cutter D attached at the end thereof.
The blade D is secured in any suitable manner, for instance, by means of a slit
or slot in the radial arm E, Figure 3, into which the blade or its shank is
inserted and then rivetted, soldered, or otherwise secured in place. A crank
handle is attached to the top of the spindle C, so that it can be turned from the
outside of the cover A. In Figure 4 an alternative way is shown of attaching the
knife to the rotatable arm, in which a dovetailed groove e is provided at the end
of the arm E, adapted to receive the shank of the knife, and to which it may be
soldered. The cutting edge of the knife being in close proximity to the sides of the
can, little or no inwardly projecting ridge or flange is left on the can, after it has
been opened.
When it is desired to open a can or box, the loose cover is placed on the top,
and pressed down until the cutter D touches or punctures the hermetically
sealed or other cover I. The handle F is then rotated by one hand, while the
can may be held by the other, until the top I of the can is cut through, and can
be removed.
When the top I has been removed and the contents of the box or can are not being
used, the device can be used to protect the contents, the cover A being placed over
the mouth of the can, thus temporarily supplying the place of the top I, and forming
a protective covering against dust, insects, etcetera.
Although the cover A is shown circular on the drawings, it may, of course,
be made any other suitable shape to correspond with the shape of the box or can.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me by
my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is :-
1. An apparatus for opening cans and for protecting the contents thereof, after
opening, from dirt, insects, or the like, comprising a loose shell or cover A for
receiving the top of the can, a rotatable radial arm E mounted centrally in the interior
of said cover and provided at or near its extremity with a downward projecting
cutter D adapted to pierce the top of the can when the cover aforesaid is pressed
thereon, and a crank handle such as F on the exterior of the cover adapted to rotate
the arm E so as to cut out the can lid, substantially as described.
2. The combined can opener and temporary cover constructed as a whole, substantially
as described.
Then this 14th dove of June 1889
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, Patent Agents for the Applicant.