IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF BUOYANT FABRICS, WHICH ARE APPLICABLE TO THE MANU- FACTURE OF GARMENTS, CARPETS, RUGS, CUSHIONS, MATTRESSES, BAGS, AND VARIOUS OTHER USEFUL ARTICLES
Year: 1857

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Goodyear, of Leicester Square, in the County
of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
MANUFACTURE OF BUOYANT FABRICS, WHICH ARE APPLICABLE TO THE MANU-
FACTURE OF GARMENTS, CARPETS, RUGS, CUSHIONS, MATTRESSES, BAGS, AND
VARIOUS OTHER USEFUL ARTICLES."
Sealed the 4th May 1858, and dated the 30th November 1857.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Goodyear, at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
30th November 1857.
I, CHARLES GOODYEAR, of Leicester Square, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE,
MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF BUOYANT FABRICS, WHICH ARE APPLICABLE TO THE
MANUFACTURE OF GARMENTS, CARPETS, RUGS, CUSHIONS, MATTRESSES, BAGS, AND
VARIOUS OTHER USEFUL ARTICLES," to be as follows:-
The object of this Invention of improvements in the manufacture of
buoyant fabrics, is the production of a fabric or fabrics of such a nature and
character as will cause them to be buoyant in the water, and at the same
time not be liable to serious damage by immersion therein. These fabrics
when made may be employed for various useful purposes, and will be found
particularly applicable to, and are intended to be specially employed for the
manufacture of garments, articles of furniture, and various other articles

page_text: employed on board ship, and which articles so manufactured mny on an
emergency be employed for the purpose of assisting in saving life and pro-
perty as in the cases of shipwreck.
In carrying out my Invention I employ different plans of manufacturing
my improved buoyant fabrics, all of which will be found useful, and must be
respectively employed according to the purposes for which it is intended that
the fabrics shall be used.
One plan consists of an improved mode of making a cellular fabric, in pro-
ducing which two waterproof fabrics are combined together in such a manner
as to leave a number of vacant spaces or cells between them. The inner
surfaces of one or both of these fabrics I propose to furnish with a coating of
flock, hair, cork cuttings or dust, wool, or other animal or vegetable fibre, or
some other similar or analogous material which may be caused to adhere to
the surfaces of the fabric, but which will to a certain extent project there-
from so as to keep the surfaces apart, and the cells extended or bugled out,
giving to the compound fabric something of the appearance of quilting; by this
means, the cells are prevented from collapsing, and a certain quantity of air
will always be kept therein, and will therefore render the compound cellular
fabric buoyant. The outer surface of this fabric may be ornamented or not,
as may be desired, by the application of flock of various colors, applied
according to any particular pattern or design. This compound fabric may
be employed either for making garments. bags to receive clothing, or other
articles, cushions, mattresses, and various other articles.
The compound cellular fabric whether used in the form of any manu.
factured article, or simply as a piece of compound fabric, will be found excced-
ingly buoyant in the water, so that any person having on a garment (say a
coat or jacket) made of this material, or having merely a yard or so wrapped
and secured round him, would be sustained in the water and be incapable of
sinking.
Another mode of making a cellular or buoyant waterproof fabric consists
in attaching to the back of any suitable waterproof fabric, a series of
hollow air tubes made also of some waterproof fabric or. material, and
arranged in any convenient manner either longitudinally, transversely, diago-
nally, or crosswise. Care should, however, be taken that the tubes be sub-
divided into cells or chambers of convenient length, so that should one or
more cells be injured, the others may remain intact and undamaged.
I also propose to provide the tubes inside with a coating of cork dust, or
cuttings, or of flock, or some suitable fibre, for the purpose of keeping the tubes
extended and prevented from collapsing, thereby rendering them more buoyant.

page_text: Another mode of producing a buoyant fabric consists in covering either
one or both sides of any suitable waterproof fabric with a thick coating of
cork dust, cuttings, or raspings, which may be made to adhere to the surface
by first paying the same over with a solution of india-rubber, or some suitable
elastic adhesive material as in the former instance. This fabric even when
used as a single fabric, will be found exceedingly buoyant, but if desired it may
be doubled and the edges joined together, and hermetically sealed so as to form
a hollow space between the fabrics, which will thus be made to enclose a
considerable amount of air. This will greatly increase its buoyancy, and this
buoyancy may be still further increased by placing air tubes as above men-
tioned between the two fabrics. A double fabric of this kind with air tubes
between will be found particularly applicable and useful for cushions or
mattresses. By using dyed cork dust or cuttings of different colors, and laying
on such various colors according to some pre-arranged design, the surface or
surfaces of the fabric may be ornamented if desired.
A quilted fabric of a very buoyant character, and yet very light and con;
venient, may be produced by enclosing between two thin waterproof fabrics,
a fabric dusted over on both sides with cork dust or cutting, or other light
material, and in making garments suitable for life preservers from a fabric
of this nature, it will be found convenient to cut out the various parts of the
proposed garment in pieces of a shape and size corresponding to the part of
the person on which it is to be worn, for instance, supposing a life preserving
jacket is to be made, the several parts may be cut out precisely in the same
manner as a tailor would cut them out of cloth or other fabric, but instead
of sewing the parts together, they may be joined by means of strips of some
waterproof fabric, and then if required, the whole may be covered over and
lined with any other suitable material so as to present a sightly appearance,
a light, flexible, and convenient life-preserving jacket may thus be produced,
and when worn will not to any serious extent incommode the wearer when
pursuing any avocations requiring the free use of the limbs and body.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Charles Goodyear in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
29th May 1858.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES
5 GOODYEAR, of Leicester Square, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, send
greeting.
29th May 1858.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES
5 GOODYEAR, of Leicester Square, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, send
greeting.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Iler Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirtieth day of November, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twenty-first year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Iler heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Charles Goodyear, Her special license that I, the said
Charles Goodyear, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Charles Goodyear, my 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 THE MANUFACTURE OF BUOYANT FABRICS, WHICH ARE APPLICABLE
TO THE MANUFACTURE OF GARMENTS, CARPETS, RUGS, CUSHIONS, MATTRESSES, BAGS,
AND VARIOUS OTHER USEFUL ARTICLES," upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said Charles Goodyear, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and scal, 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, the said Charles Goodyear, do hereby declare
the nature of my 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 Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the
letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
The object of this Invention of improvements in the manufacture of buoyant
fabrics, is the production of a fabric or fabrics of such a nature and character
as will cause them to be buoyant in the water, and at the same time not be
liable to serious damage by immersion therein. These fabrics when made
inay be employed for various useful purposes, and will be found particularly
applicable to, and are intended to be specially employed for the manufacture
of garments, articles of furniture, and various other articles employed on board
ship, and which articles so manufactured, niay on an emergency be employed
for the purpose of assisting in saving life and property as in the cases of
shipwreck.
In carrying out my Invention I employ different plans of manufacturing
my improved buoyant fabrics, all of which will be found useful, and must be
respectively employed according to the purposes for which it is intended that
the fabrics shall bo used.
One plan consists of an improved mode of making a cellular fabric, in pro-

page_text: ducing which two waterproof fabrics are combined together in such a manner
as to leave a number of vacant spaces or cells between them. The inner
surfaces of one or both of these fabrics I propose to furnish with a coating of
flock, hair, cork cuttings, or dust, wool, or other animal or vegetable fibre, or
some other similar or analogous material, which may be caused to adhere
to the surfaces of the fabric, but which will to a certain extent project thero-
from so as to keep the surfaces apart, and the cells extended or bulged out,
giving to the compound fabric something of the appearance of quilting. By
this means the cells are prevented from collapsing, and a certain quantity of
air will always be kept therein, and will therefore render the compound
cellular fabric buoyant. A piece of this fabric is shewn in plan at Fig. 1,
and in section at Fig. 2. a, a, are the outer or covering fabrics, and b, the
air cells filled with flock, hair, cork cuttings, or other animal or vegetable
fibre. The outer surface of this fabric may be ornamented or not, as may be
desired, by the application of flock of various colors applied according to any
particular pattern or design. An obvious modification of this mode of manu-
facturing buoyant fabrics, and which will be found a very convenient method
of producing a quilted fabric, consists in first preparing a number of air cells
of any convenient form and dimensions, by enclosing a layer of cotton or
other wadding, loose hair, flock, wool, cork cuttings, or other light substance,
between two sheets of thin tissue, and then cutting this fabric into pieces of
the required size and dimensions. These pieces are then stuck on to the
prepared surface of some suitable waterproof fabric, and upon further covering
the air cells up with another sheet of waterproof and airproof fabric with a
5 prepared surface, and pressing the fabrics together, the two outer water and
airproof fabrics will be made to adhere at all those parts where spaces are left
between the air cells, so as to form a buoyant waterproof fabric with a quilted
surface; Fig. 3 is a sectional view of this fabric; Fig. 4 is a plan view, with
one of the outer fabrics removed, and shewing the air cells c attached to the
prepared surface ready to be covered up. The compound fabric in whatever
way it may be produced, may be employed either for making garments or
bags to receive clothing or other articles, cushions, mattresses, and various
other articles. The compound cellular fabric, whether used in the form of
any manufactured article or simply as a piece of compound fabric, will bo
5 found exceedingly buoyant in the water, so that any person having on a
garment (say a coat or jacket) made of this material, or having merely two or
three yards wrapped and secured round him, would be sustained in the water
and be incapable of sinking.
t
Another mode of making a cellular or buoyant waterproof fabric consists in

page_text: C, C,
attaching to the back of any suitable waterproof fabric a series of hollow air
tubes, made also of some waterproof fabric or material, and arranged in any
convenient manner, either longitudinally, transversely, diagonally, or crosswise;
care should however be taken that the tubes be subdivided into cells or
chambers of convenient length, so that should one or more cells be injured,
the others may remain in tact and undamaged. Fig. 5 is a sectional view of
a cellular fabric of this description; Fig. 6 is a plan view of the same.
are the separate tubes, which when attached to the prepared surface of the
covering fabric form the air cells. The tubes to be employed in producing this
buoyant fabric may either be formed separately and attached separately to a
prepared surface of some suitable water and airproof fabric, or the surface of
a sheet of suitable fabric may be corrugated or indented by passing it between
rollers or pressing it beneath plates to give it the required form. By causing
this corrugated surface to adhere to the prepared surface of the outer fabric,
and by closing the ends of the corrugations, a series of tubes or cells filled with
air will be formed, and by causing another covering fabric to be placed on the
back of the corrugated fabric, and closing the ends of the second set of cor-
rugations, another series of air cells or tubes will be produced, as seen in the
Drawing at Fig. 7, in which a, a, represent the outer or covering fabrics, and
c, c, the corrugated airproof fabric which form the cells. If desired, tho
interior of the tubes or the surfaces of the corrugated fabric may be covered
with a coating of cork dust or cuttings, or of flock or some suitable fibre for
the purpose of keeping the tubes extended and to prevent them from collapsing,
thereby rendering them more buoyant.
Another mode of producing a buoyant fabric consists in covering either one s
or both sides of any suitable waterproof fabric with a thick coating of cork
dust, cuttings, or raspings, which may be made to adhere to the surface by
first paying the same over with a solution of india-rubber or some suitable
elastic adhesive material, as in the former instance. This fabric even when
used as a single fabric will be found exceedingly buoyant, but if desired it may
be doubled, and the edges joined together and hermetically scaled, so as to
form a hollow space between the fabrics, which will thus be made to enclose a
considerable amount of air. This will greatly increase its buoyancy; and this
buoyancy may be still further augmented by placing air tubes, as above
mentioned, between the two fubrics. A double fabric of this kind with air
tubes between will be found particularly applicable and useful for cushions and
mattresses, and for making life preservers or garments. It will be evident
that this fabric may be made of any thickness, and its buoyancy very much
increased by giving it alternate layers of waterproof cement and cork cuttings,

page_text: using as small and thin a layer as possible of elastic cement or gum. By this
means a considerable quantity of air will be enclosed, and will add much to
the buoyancy of the fabric. By using dyed cork dust or cuttings of different
colors, and laying on such various colors according to some pre-arranged
design, the surface or surfaces of the fabric may be ornamented if desired, or a
pattern or design may be printed thereon in oil or other colors like floor-
cloth.
A quilted fabric of a very buoyant character and yet very light and con-
venient may be produced by enclosing between two thin waterproof fabrics
pieces of a fabric dusted over on both sides with cork dust, or cuttings, or
other light material. And in making garments suitable for life preservers from
a fabric of this nature, it will be found convenient to cut out the various parts
of the proposed garment in pieces of a shape and size corresponding to the part
of the person on which it is to be worn; for instance, supposing a life
preserving jacket is to be made, the several parts may be cut out precisely in
the same manner as a tailor would cut them out of cloth or other fabric; but
instead of sewing the parts together, they may be joined by means of strips of
some waterproof fabric, and then, if required, the whole may be covered over
and lined with any suitable material, so as to present a sightly appearance.
A light, flexible, and convenient life-preserving jacket may thus be produced,
and when worn will not, to any serious extent, incommode the wearer when
pursuing any avocations requiring the free use of the limbs and body.
An important feature in these buoyant fabrics is, that they may be per-
forated at various parts between the cells, so as to admit of the transmission
or passage of air and prevent the perspiration from being confined, as is now
the case in waterproof fabrics. This perforation of the fabric may be effected
without at all affecting the buoyant character of the article.
Having now described my Invention of improvements in the manufacture
of buoyant fabrics which are applicable to the manufacture of garments,
carpets, rugs, cushions, mattresses, bags, and various other useful articles,
and having explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, I claim as
the Invention secured to me by Letters Patent, as aforesaid, the various
modes herein shewn and described of making cellular or buoyant fabrics.
As regards cellular fabrics, I claim particularly providing the cells or spaces
between the outer waterproof or airproof fabrics with any light or flexible
material which will keep the cells or spaces expanded and prevent then from
collapsing, and the air contained therein from escaping should any of the
cells become damaged or perforated by accident or otherwise.
I also claim the mode herein described of rendering waterproof fabrics

page_text: buoyant by the application thereto of cork cuttings or other light and buoyant
substance, as above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Goodyear, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the Twenty-sixth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight.
CHAS GOODYEAR. (Ls.)