IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR OPENING AND SHUTTING WINDOW SASHES, LIGHTS, AND CASEMENTS IN GREENHOUSES, FACTORIES, AND OTHER BUILDINGS
Year: 1877

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Farvis, of the City and County of Bristol, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR OPENING AND SHUTTING
WINDOW SASHES, LIGHTS, AND CASEMENTS IN GREENHOUSES, FACTORIES,
AND OTHER BUILDINGS."
Sealed the 28th August 1877, and dated the 15th March 1877.
Sealed the 28th August 1877, and dated the 15th March 1877.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Farvis at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents on the 15th March 1877.
1
WILLIAM FARVIS, of the City and County of Bristol. IMPROVEMENTS IN APPA-
RATUS FOR OPENING AND SHUTTING WINDOW SASHES, 'LIGHTS,' AND CASEMENTS
IN GREENHOUSES, FACTORIES, AND OTHER BUILDINGS."
The object of this Invention is to afford facilities for the ready and simultaneous
opening and closing to any required extent of some or all the window sashes,
"lights," or casements in a greenhouse, workshop, or other building, and so that the
number of sashes, "lights," or casements to be opened in a building may be regulated
as desired. For this purpose I arrange, say in a greenhouse fitted with movable
skylights on each side of the roof and fitted with movable "lights" along each side
and at each end, peculiar mechanism of rods, levers, and spindles, worked simul-
taneously by, say, one hand lever, which for convenience may be placed near an
entrance door, or in any other suitable place. This lever works against a quadrant
or other regulating stop appliance for holding it in any required position when
shifted thereto. This hand lever is fixed on a spindle running along one side of the
building; at each window the spindle is fitted with a lever or arm extending
upwards and jointed to another arm jointed to the lower part of the window, which
may swing on hinges at the top as usual. On turning the spindle for raising the
lights or windows, the levers on the spindle are as against the corresponding levers
on the lights opened up against each other, and ultimately straightened out in a
line (knuckle joint fashion) when the lights are quite opened. There are also on
the spindle fixed one or more other levers which, by rod or rods and lever appliances
communicate notion to a spindle running along the middle of the building near the
roof, and fitted with lever appliances jointed to levers on the skylights in a similar

page_text: manner as just described with reference to the side lights. This upper spindle, by
rods and levers, communicates similar movement to a spindle running along the
other side of the building, and fitted with levers for actuating the lights on that
side. The upper spindle, also by levers and rods, communicates movement to a
spindle at each end of the building and fitted with levers for actuating the end
lights in a similar manner to that described with reference to the sides. By fixing
certain of the levers, say, by means of set screws, any light or lights, or any one or
both rows of side lights, or one or both rows of end lights, or one or both rows of
roof skylights may be disconnected on unscrewing such set screws, which may
conveniently be done by means of long handled spanners without necessity for the
use of ladders.
Where it is not convenient to have a central spindle near the roof, two spindles
may be applied, one on each side.
The aforesaid appliances may be arranged either inside the buildings or outside
the same, or partly one and partly the other, as inay be found most convenient.
For raising and lowering sashes sliding one against the other I apply the following
lever arrangement either to the top or the bottom sash (or it may be to both) :-On
a spindle which can be turned by, say, a hand lever as above described, I fix a
slotted lever for each window (or it may be two if I intend to work both sashes in
each window); to the sash I joint a corresponding slotted lever; each lever has a
pin working in the slot of the other lever; the pins may be fitted with ferrules or
rollers to diminish friction; as the spindle is turned the levers are drawn apart or
together. Or instead of the slotted levers working thus together, I may employ
one sliding in the other, or one against the other, and held together by staples.
In case of a great number of lights or sashes requiring more power to work than
a hand lever, I may apply screw or wheel gearing appliances, or I may use the
Bcrew lever
described in the Specification of my Patent, dated 5th June 1875,
.
$6
No. 2077.
"
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said William Farvis in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 15th September
1877.
WILLIAM FARVIS, of the City and County of Bristol. "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPA-
RATUS FOR OPENING AND SHUTTING WINDOW SASHES, 'LIGHTS, AND CASEMENTS
IN GREENHOUSES, FACTORIES, AND OTHER BUILDINGS."
The object of this Invention is to afford facilities for the ready and simultaneous
opening and closing to any required extent of some or all the window sashes,
"lights," or casements in a greenhouse, workshop, or other building, and so that
the number of sashes, lights, or casements to be opened in a building may be
regulated as desired. For this purpose I arrange, say, in a groenhouse fitted with
movable skylights on each side of the roof and fitted with movable "lights" along
ench side and at each end, peculiar mechanism of rods, levers, and spindles worked
simultaneously by, say, one hand lever, which for convenience may be placed near
an entrance, door, or in any other suitable place. This lever works against a
quadrant or other regulating stop appliance for holding it in any required position
when shifted thereto. This hand lever is fixed on a spindle running along one side
of the building; at each window the spindle is fitted with a lever or arm extending
upwards and jointed to another arm jointed to the lower part of the windows which
may swing on hinges at the top as usual. On turning the spindle for raising the
lights" or windows, the levers on the spindle are as against the corresponding levers
on the lights opened up against each other, and ultimately straightened out in a line
(knuckle joint fashion) when the lights are quite opened. There are also on the
spindle fixed one or more other levers which, by rod or rods and lever appliances,
65

page_text: .communicate motion to a spindle running along the middle of the building near the
roof, and fitted with lever appliances jointed to levers on the skylights, in a similar
manner as just described with reference to the side lights. This upper spindle, by
rods and levers, communicates similar movement to a spindle running along the
other side of the building and fitted with levers for actuating the lights on that
side. The upper spindle, also by levers and rods, communicates movement to a
spindle at each end of the building and fitted with levers for actuating the end
lights in a similar manner to that described with reference to the sides. By fixing
certain of the levers, say, by means of set screws, any light or lights, or any one or
both rows of side lights, or one or both rows of end lights, or one or both rows of
roof skylights may be disconnected on unscrewing such set screws, which may
conveniently be done by means of long handled spanners without necessity for the
use of ladders.
Where it is not convenient to have a central spindle near the roof two spindles
may be applied, one on each side.
The aforesaid appliances may be arranged either inside the buildings or outside
the same, or partly one and partly the other, as may be found most convenient.
For raising and lowering sashes sliding one against the other I apply the following
Jever arrangement either to the top or the bottom sash (or it may be to both) :-On
a spindle which can be turned by, say, a hand lever as above described, I fix a
slotted lever for each window (or it may be two if I intend to work both sashes in
each window); to the sash I joint a corresponding slotted lever, each lever has a
pin working in the slot of the other lever; the pins inay be fitted with ferrules or
rollers to diminish friction; as the spindle is turned the levers are drawn apart or
together. Or instead of the slotted levers working thus together, I may employ
one sliding in the other or one against the other and held together by staples.
In case of a great number of lights or sashes requiring more power to work than
a hand lever, I may apply a screw or wheel gearing appliance, or I may use the
screw lever described in the Specification of iny Patent, dated 5th June 1875,
No. 2077.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings is a side elevation of a greenhouse fitted
up with various appliances for opening and shutting lights, casements, skylights,
and sashes. Figure 2 is an end elevation of the same, the building itself being
shewn in dotted lines in order to give more prominence to the other parts which
are shewn in full lines, and also to a larger scale than the actual practice; Figure 3
is a plan section; Figure 4, a vertical cross section; Figures 5, 5ª, 6, and 7 are
details.
A is the lever for working the whole of the lights as in this instance intended;
it is here shown fixed near the end of the building, but may also, especially for long
buildings, conveniently be placed at or near the middle of the length of the building
or in any other convenient place in, or outside, or at a distance from the building.
B is the spindle on which it is fixed, which, in this case, is the same spindle as the
one that carries the levers for working the lights, but it might sometimes more
conveniently be placed on a separate spindle connected by lever or other gearing to
the spindle which carries the levers for working the lights. These latter are here
shewn of various forms, thus, a, b, and c are lights properly so called, which are here
shewn hinged at the top, but may, if desired, be hinged in the middle; d is a casement
hinging at one side; in the case of a school or factory the casement might hinge
round pivots in the middle, at top and bottom; e shews a pair of ordinary sashes
which are also shewn separately at Figure 5.
The working spindle B is here shewn at the bottom of the lights, or it may be
placed at the top, or at any intermediate height, but in the case of the sashes it may
be also placed on or under the floor or under or over the ceiling. The lever A
works against a quadrant a¹ which may be with tooth notches or holes, as is well
known, so as to afford facility for fixing it in any required position, thereby holding
the lights in a more or less open position, as desired. To the working spindle B
are fixed one or more levers or arms C against each of the lights; they may be

page_text: fixed by means set screws; each lever is jointed or connected to another lever or
arm D which is jointed to a bracket fon the "light" as the spindle B is turned; by
taking hold of the lever A all the levers C are as against the levers D opened up
against each other, and if the spindle B is turned round far enough, the levers C
and D are straightened out in a line, knuckle joint fashion; the lights will then be
quite open. One or more of the levers may, if desired, be disconnected, and thus as
many lights be kept closed as desired while opening the rest.
The spindle B also carries a lever E which, by a rod F, is connected to a lever G
on a short spindle H, which also carries an arm or lever J which, by the rod K, com-
municates motions to a lever L on a spindle M, which is here carried along to each
end of the building and to which is fixed a lever N, or, for a long building, two or
more of such levers may be used. The lever N again is by a rod O connected to a
lever P on a short spindle Q similar to the short spindle H on the opposite side.
The lever R on the spindle Q is again, by the rod S, connected to the lever Ton
the spindle B' which runs the length of the building, similarly to the working
spindle B. The ends have spindles similar to B and B₁, and which receive motion
from a lever U on each end of the spindle M by means of rods V, V, and levers W,
which are connected to the end spindles. The same spindle M carries levers C¹
which are jointed to levers D' that are jointed to brackets f¹ on the lights in the
roof; these roof lights may, of course, be on one or both sides.
Figure 5 shews the lever appliances for raising sashes. The spindle B with its
two levers C, C, communicates motion to one end each of two double armed levers g
by means of the rods F; the other ends of the said levers are slotted and take on
to pins on the sashes, raising one and lowering the other simultaneously; the pins
inay be fitted with rollers or blocks. Instead of working both sashes either of them
may be disconnected. By this arrangement for working sashes I avoid the use of
weights, cords, pulleys, and fastenings, thus simplifying the fitting up and at the
same time affording additional security against thieves. For schools, workrooms,
and other large buildings sashes fitted in this way are particularly convenient.
Figure 5 shews an arrangement for working a sash from a lever g placed below
the spindle B, which latter may also be any desired distance below the sash. F is the
rod connecting the lever g with the lever C on the spindle B, and h is a rod leading
from the slot in the lever to the sash. Or, instead of the rod h connecting to the
middle of the sash, there may be one rod on each side of the sash branching off
from the lower part of the rod h.
Figure 6 shews a modified arrangement of the lever g which is here made in two
parts, sliding one in the other. Figure 7 shews the same lever g of two parts,
sliding one against the other.
Figure 8 shows an arrangement of sash raising gear in which the spindle B carries
a slotted lever C which is fitted with a pin at the end; to the sash is jointed
another slotted lever g, which also has a pin; the pin of each lever works in the
slot of the other lever.
The sliding sashes may be fitted with rollers to diminish the friction.
The spindle B and the whole or part of the working gear may, if required, be
placed outside the building.
And having thus described and ascertained the nature of this invention, I declare
that I claim the arrangement and combination of levers on spindles and corresponding
levers on or connected to sashes, "lights," or casements working in connection with
the first-named levers for the purpose of simultaneously operating some or all such
sashes, lights, or casements, all substantially as herein set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Farvis, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Sixth day of September, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and seventy-seven.
WILLIAM FARVIS. (L.S.)