AN IMPROVED CON- STRUCTION OF SPRING BED OR MATTRESS, AND APPARATUS CONNECTED THERE- WITH
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Edward Gedge, of the Firm of John Gedge
and Son, of 23, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Patent Agent, for the Invention of "AN IMPROVED CON-
STRUCTION OF SPRING BED OR MATTRESS, AND APPARATUS CONNECTED THERE-
WITH." A communication from abroad by Jean Antoine Alexandre
Dupuy and Pierre Grivaud, both of Macon (Saône et Loire), France.
Sealed the 24th October 1866, and dated the 25th April 1866.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edward Gedge
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
25th April 1866.
I, WILLIAM EDWARD GEDGE, of the Firm of John Gedge and Son, of
No. 28, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex,
Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"AN IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF SPRING BED OR MATTRESS, AND APPARATUS
CONNECTED THEREWITH," (a communication to me from abroad by Jean Antoine
Alexandre Dupuy and Pierre Grivaud, both of Macon (Saône et Loire),
France,) to be as follows:-
The improved mattress or spring bed, the subject of this Invention, is com-
posed of a case or box made of wood or iron at pleasure; of five laths
forming the bottom of the box, the two outside laths carrying three springs
and the three intermediate ones six springs, all spiral made of copper, and
fixed by means of cramps or other fastenings; of three moveable laths, one at

page_text: a
the head, two at the feet, the first of the two separated from the box
space of about one inch. These three laths are connected together by two
iron rods fixed to the two outside laths by a double bend at right angles
forming hook exteriorly and interiorly in the wood; thus arranged they form
a frame in which is the intermediate foot lath, herein-after referred to;
this frame is covered by a sacking or flat wire gauze with lozenge-shaped or
rectangular meshes and knotted; this wire gauze or sacking is bound on the
two rods without any solution of continuity, and it is fixed to the head lath
and the intermediate one at the foot by means of small cramps. The head
lath is held by three metal hinges, one plate of which is fixed to the inside of
the box and the other fixed interiorly to the head lath; this head lath (the
foot lath preserving its freedom) plays like the lid of a trunk. The extreme
or outside foot lath is furnished, like the head lath, with three hinges fixed
interiorly; the first plate of the hinge forms a right angle, the vertical side of
which is held by a screw rivet bolt, and the horizontal side by a screw nail.
The second plate, which is but a continuation of the horizontal side, is fixed
by two screw bolts, and extends into the space which separates the two foot
laths. The intermediate foot lath has the property of sliding by its two
grooves along the two rods which form the framing; in front of the extension
of the second plate of the hinges three notches or grooves are made in the
upper part of the wood. The extreme or outer foot lath is traversed by three
strong screws which cross the second space and penetrate into the inter-
mediate lath. The play of these screws takes place in the first space so as to
bring back the intermediate lath towards the outer lath, and in this move-
ment the extension of the hinges passes in, the notches, and gives to the lath
an additional power of resistance. The advantages of this intermediate lath
are these: If the wire gauze or sacking by too great'a tension renders the
mattress hard the wire gauze is slackened by the play of the screws. If the
wire gauze does not possess the necessary tension, and that the play of
the elastics causes it to form pockets or inequalities, the tension is increased,
and the wire gauze or sacking is brought back to its proper position. To
the five laths which form the bottom of the box or case correspond five rods
tying together the two rods of the framing, and arranged one by one on the
middle of the springs in their upper part; the springs fixed to the laths: are
also fixed to the sacking or wire gauze and maintain the fixity of the trans-
verse rods. The transverse rods prevent the displacement of the parallel rods
and moderate their elasticity as well as that given to the springs by the
heaviest weight. The action of the hinges at the head and foot gives a com-
bination of elasticity, the play of which is limited in favor of the springs, the

page_text: strength of which cannot be compromised even were they of a nature to be
easily warped.
The special apparatus for setting up the above-described spring bed or
mattress is composed of two parts. The first part consists of two superposed
iron rods; the lower rod is armed with pins or teeth intended to catch in the
meshes of the wire gauze sacking; these pins traverse the upper rod which
is pressed against the other rod by means of three wing nuts corresponding
with three screws fixed on the lower rod. These two rods are brought toge-
ther thus:-The lower rod is placed within the mattress so that the pins or
teeth which it carries pass through the meshes, and the upper rod is brought
on to the teeth of the lower rod where it is secured by the three wing nuts.
The second part consists of a framing composed of 4 parallel. rods two and
two, of which three are fixed and one moveable. The fixed rod fits on to the
lower lath of the mattress by means of two clamps or hooks; the moveable
rod is furnished with two catches which. hook on to the apparatus described
as part No. 1, and by means of a screw set in motion by a crank the moveable
rod is brought nearer to the fixed rod, and in this movement draws the wire
gauze sacking to the desired point of tension. The part of the apparatus
(No. 1) which embraces the wire gauze between its two rods protects the
meshes against damage and regulates the movement given by the other part of
the apparatus (No. 2).
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Edward Gedge in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 25th October 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
EDWARD GEDGE, of the Firm of John Gedge and Son, of No. 23, Southampton
Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Patent Agent, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of April, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the twenty-ninth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
William Edward Gedge, Her special licence that I, the said William Edward
Gedge, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said William Edward Gedge, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should
at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times

page_text: 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 "AN
IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF SPRING BED OR MATTRESS, AND APPARATUS CONNECTED
THEREWITH," (a communication to me from abroad by Jean Antoine Alexandre
Dupuy and Pierre Grivaud, both of Macon, Saône et Loire, France, upon
the condition (amongst others that I, the said William Edward Gedge,
my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or
their, or one of their hands and seals, 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
I said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Edward Gedge, 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, reference being had to the accompanying Sheet of
Drawing forming part of this Specification, and to the figures and letters of
reference placed thereon:-
The improved mattress or spring bed, the subject of this Invention, is
composed, firstly, of a case or box made of wood or iron at pleasure; secondly,
of five laths which form the bottom of the box into which they dovetail. On
the two outside or end laths rest three springs, and on the three intermediate
ones rest also six springs, all spiral, made of copper, and fixed by means of
eramps and fastenings. Thirdly, of three moveable laths each having its play
and special importance, one at the head, two at the feet, the first of the two
separated from the box by a space of about one inch, and the second separated
from the first by a space of about three inches; these three laths are con-
nected together by two iron rods fixed to the two outside or end laths by a
double bend at right angles forming hook exteriorly and interiorly in the
wood; thus arranged they form a frame on which is the intermediate foot lath
herein-after referred to. This frame is covered by a sacking or flat wire
gauze with lozenge-shaped or rectangular meshes and knotted; this wire
gauze or sacking is bound on the two rods without any solution of continuity,
and it is fixed to the head lath and the intermediate one at the feet by means
of small cramps. Fourthly, the head lath is held by three metal hinges, one
plate of which is fixed to the inside of the box and the other fixed interiorly
to the head lath; this head lath (the foot lath preserving its freedom) plays
like the lid of a trunk. The extreme or outside foot lath is furnished like the

page_text: head lath with three hinges fixed exteriorly. The first plate of the hinge
forms a right angle, the vertical side of which is held by a screw rivet bolt,
and the horizontal side by a screw nail; the second plate, which is but the
continuation of the horizontal side, is fixed by two screw rivet bolts and
extends into the space which separates the two foot laths. Fifthly, the inter-
mediate foot lath has the property of sliding by its two grooves along the two
rods which form the framing. In front of the extension of the second plate
of the hinges three notches or grooves are made in the upper part of the
wood; the extreme or outer foot lath is traversed by three strong screws
which cross the second space and penetrate into the intermediate lath. The
play of these screws takes place in the first space so as to bring back the
intermediate lath towards the outer lath, and in this movement the extension
of the hinges place itself in the notches, and gives to the lath a new power of
resistance. The following are the advantages of this intermediate lath in the
general arrangement of the spring bed:-If the wire gauze or sacking by
too great a tension renders the spring bed or mattress hard the wire gauze is
slackened by the play of these screws; if the wire gauze does not possess the
necessary tension and that the play of the elastics causes it to sink and form
pockets or inequalities, the tension is increased and the wire gauze or sacking
is thus brought back to its proper position. Sixthly, to the five laths which
form the bottom of the box or case correspond five rods tying together the
two rods of the framing, and arranged one by one on the middle of the springs
in their upper part. The springs fixed to the laths are also fixed to the
sacking or wire gauze by fastenings and maintain the fixity of the transverse
rods, that is to say, keeps them in their proper position. The transverse rods
prevent the lateral displacement of the parallel rods and moderate their elas-
ticity as well as that given to the springs by the heaviest weight. The action
of the hinges at the head and foot gives a combination of elasticity, the play
of which is limited in favour of the springs, the strength of which cannot be
compromised even were they of a nature to be easily warped. Seventhly, of a
special machine or apparatus for setting up the above-described spring bed or
mattress and stretching the wire gauze or sacking; this apparatus is composed
of two distinct parts.
.
Part No. 1. Two superposed iron rods.-The lower rod is armed with pins
or teeth intended to catch. or hook the meshes of the wire gauze sacking;
these pins traverse the upper rod which is pressed against the lower rod by
means of three wing nuts corresponding with three screws fixed on the lower rod!
These two rods are brought together in the. following manner (see Figures 5
and 6 of the annexed Drawing) :-The lower rod E supporting the pins and the

page_text: .
screws is placed within the mattress or spring bed so that the pins which it
carries pass through the meshes; the upper rod E¹ is applied on the lower
rod E by means of these pins and the three wing nuts.
Part No. 2 (see Figures 3 and 4 of the Drawing).-A framing composed
of 4 parallel rods, two and two, of which 3 are fixed and one moveable. The
fixed rod A fits on to the lower lath of the mattress by means of the two
clamps or hooks C; the moveable rod A is furnished with two catches which
hook on to the apparatus described as part No. 1. By means of the screw V
set in motion by the crank m, and supported by the pieces D and D³, the
rod A is brought nearer to the rod A, and in this movement draws the
wire gauze sacking to the desired point of tension. The part of the apparatus
(No. 1) embracing the wire gauze between its two rods protects the meshes
against damage, and regulates the movement given by part No. 1 of the
apparatus.
Figure 1 is a plan view of the improved spring bed or mattress above
described, and Figure 2 a sectional side view taken at A, L, Figure 1, shewing
the mechanism at the head and that at the foot; A, B, C, D, box or casing
of the spring bed; E, F, fixed lath or cross piece attached to the casing by
the three hinges k; E¹, F¹, a second fixed lath or cross piece attached to the
casing by the three hinges k¹; E", F", moveable lath sliding on the iron
frame being moved as may be desired by the action of the drilled headed
screws a, b, c. The iron frame and the wire gauze are indicated by blue lines
and the copper springs in red.
Figures 3 and 4 shew in plan and elevation part No. 1 of the setting-up
apparatus. A, A, rod or bar carrying the crank; A, A¹, moveable rod or
bar opposite and parallel to the first, and supporting the end of the screw;
B, B, small bars or rods uniting A, A, to A', A¹; b, b, staples guiding the
movement of the bars B, B; C, C, forked pieces fitting on to the lower part
of the crank of the spring bed and supporting the rod A, A; c, c, hinged
hooks fixed to the rod A, A¹; D, nut fixed to the rod A, A¹, supporting the
screw; D', collar supporting the screw V on the rod A, A; V, screw receiving
movement from the crank m, and serving to bring the rods A, A, and A', A³,
closer to each other.
Figures 5 and 6 shew in plan and elevation part No. 2 of the setting-up
apparatus. E, E, rod or bar supporting the iron pins a, a, intended to enter
the meshes of the wire gauze sacking; E, E', second rod pierced with holes
corresponding with the pins on the rod E, E; e, e, wing nuts running on the
screws and bringing the rods E, E, and E', E', closer together or further
apart.

page_text: Modifications of the spring bed or mattress.-It may be composed, firstly,
of a deal or other wooden casing or box, or of an iron one at pleasure.
Secondly, of an iron framing formed by three iron cross pieces and two rods
fixed by the end to the two external cross piece. The head cross piece is
placed flatwise; the foot cross piece and the intermediate one are placed on
edge; the head cross piece and that at the foot are attached to the casing by
three jointed hinges. In the casing is an intermediate cross piece playing on
the side rods by means of three screws; these screws are set at the foot in the
cross piece of the framing, through which they pass to enter the moveable
cross piece; the play of these screws gives to this cross piece a come or a go
movement according to requirement. Three small horizontal rods keep the
two rods of the framing at the regulated distance apart. Thirdly, the bottom
of the box is formed of 4 wooden laths each supporting 4 springs; the wooden
laths and the springs which they support are not limited but increase or dimi-
nish according to the size of the spring bed; these laths are fixed to the
casing by screws at their ends. Fourthly, the apron of the spring bed is
composed of steel bands, varying in number, fixed at the head and foot by
spiral springs terminating in hooks which fix at the head on to the cross piece
of the framing and to the intermediate cross piece at the foot. To the wooden
laths which uphold the springs correspond an equal number of steel bands
fixed to each row and each spring by four fastenings and by two fastenings to
the two rods of the framing. On the wooden laths and on the exterior of the
springs are fixed two parallel cords which bear on the first lower row of each
spring to deaden their noise. Fifthly, the action of the screws on the entire
apron or sacking arrangement is exercised directly to increase or lessen the
tension of the bands and consequently to increase or lessen their elasticity. This
spring bed or mattress may be termed spring bed with moderating screw.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Edward Gedge, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-fifth day of October, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six.