Improvements in the Manufacture of Wooden Paving Blocks for Paving Roads, Tram Lines, Crossings, Pavements, and for other like purposes.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 4th Nov., 1890
Complete Specification Left, 7th July, 1891-Accepted, 8th Aug., 1891
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Wooden Paving Blocks for
Paving Roads, Tram Lines, Crossings, Pavements, and for other
like purposes.
ROBERT YOUNG ARDAGH of The Worcester City Saw Mills Shrub Hill
Worcester Timber Merchant do hereby declare the nature of this invention to
be as follows :-
My invention consists of the improvements hereinafter described in manu-
facturing wooden paving blocks by which improvements paving blocks are
produced giving a better hold to the feet of pedestrians and horses than and are
not liable to wear so smooth as wooden paving blocks of the ordinary kind.
In making a paving block according to my invention I take pieces of oak elm
beech or other hard wood but preferably oak and cut bars or prisms therefrom
preferably bars square in cross section that is four sided prisms. I prefer to
make these bars of about an inch square at their ends and of a length equal
to the thickness of the block to be made. I subject these bars or prisms of
wood to a preserving process either by treating them with creosote or other
preservative. I take a series of the said preserved bars or prisms sufficient in
number to form a block of the desired size, and pack them together side by side
so as to form a compact bundle the ends of the bars forming the face and bottom
of the block. The said wooden bars or prisms are fixed permanently together
by two clips of hoop iron the ends of which clips overlap and are fixed together
and to the blocks by nails as hereinafter explained. The wooden bars or prisms
packed together as described and having the clips placed around them are
operated upon by a press which acting on the four sides of the block compress
the bars compactly together. While the partially made block is under pressure
nails are driven through holes in the overlapping ends of the clips into the wood
and the clips thereby fastened on the block the parts of which are thus fixed
together in their compressed state.
The pieces of oak or other wood from which I make the bars or prisms may be
of small size such pieces for example as are commonly used as fire wood.
The ends of the fibres of the wood are presented at the top and bottom of the
block and as the layers of the fibres in the several bars are not parallel or nearly
parallel as in a block consisting of one piece of wood paving blocks made according
to my invention wear with more regularity and are less likely to wear smooth than
paving blocks consisting of one piece of wood.
Although I prefer to use bars square in cross section yet I do not limit myself
thereto as bars of any shape which will readily pack into the figure of a rectangular
paving block may be employed.
Where paving blocks of a figure other than rectangular are required they may.
be made of bars or prisms of such form in cross section as will when packed in
series form blocks of the required shape.
When paving blocks made according to my invention are laid the short distance
at which they are separated by the hoop iron clips facilitates the entrance between
them of the melted pitch or other semi-liquid binding material or cement employed,
and the ordinary distance strips used in laying wooden blocks of the ordinary kind
for the separation of the blocks may be dispensed with.
Dated the 4th day of November 1890.
W. T. WHITEMAN,
Agent for the Applicant.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Wooden Paving Blocks for
Paving Roads. Tram Lines, Crossings, Pavements, and for other
like purposes.
I ROBERT YOUNG ARDAGH of The Worcester City Saw Mills, Shrub Hill,
Worcester Timber Merchant do hereby declare the nature of my invention and
in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:—
My invention consists of the improvements hereinafter described in manu-
facturing wooden paving blocks by which improvements paving blocks are
produced giving a better hold to the feet of pedestrians and horses than and are
not liable to wear so smooth as wooden paving blocks of the ordinary kind.
In making a paving block according to my invention I take pieces of oak elm
beech or other hard wood but preferably oak and cut bars or prisms therefrom
preferably bars square in cross section, that is, four sided prisms. I prefer to make
these bars of about an inch square at their ends and of a length equal to the
thickness of the block to be made. I subject these bars or prisms of wood to a
preserving process either by treating them with creosote or other preservative.
I take a series of the said preserved bars or prisms sufficient in number to form a
block of the desired size and pack them together side by side so as to form a
compact bundle the ends of the bars forming the face and bottom of the block.
The said wooden bars or prisms are fixed permanently together by one or two clips
or bands of hoop iron the ends of which overlap and are fixed together and to the
blocks by nails as hereinafter explained. The wooden bars or prisms packed
together as described are operated upon by a powerful compressing machine which
forces them through a die and the bars are thus compactly pressed together.
While the partially made block is under pressure in the die a band or clip of hoop
iron is passed round and strained or forced tight; a hole is punched in the over-
lapping ends of the clips or band and a nail is driven through the holes into the
wood thereby securing the clips or band on the block the parts of which are thus
fixed together in their compressed state. I do not limit myself to compressing the
pieces or prisms by forcing them through a die as they may be compressed in other
ways; for example, by a press.
By this invention ends and small waste pieces from the saws in the conversion of
trees into scantlings and the like such as are commonly used for firewood can be
utilized and small cheap class of timber cut and adapted to this purpose.
When paving blocks made according to my invention are laid the short distance
at which they are separated by the hoop iron clips facilitates the entrance between
them of the melted pitch or other semi-liquid binding material or cement employed
and the ordinary distance strips used in laying wooden blocks of the ordinary kind
for the separation of the blocks may be dispensed with and these blocks can be laid
closer together than other hard wood blocks as they do not require so much space
between them and consequently do not expose the edges to be worn and rounded
off by horses' feet.
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawing represents in plan a series of rectangular
or oblong wooden paving blocks laid or arranged for use the said paving blocks
being made or constructed according to my invention.
Figure 2 represents in side elevation and Figure 3 in plan of upper face or
bottom one of my improved paving blocks drawn to a larger scale.
Each of the improved paving blocks is composed of a series of square bars or
four sided prisms a, a of hard wood of a length equal to the thickness of the block
to be made (see Figure 2) the said bars or prisms a a a being packed together side
by side so as to form a compact bundle the ends of the bars forming the face or
bottom of the block (see Figures 1 and 3). Before the bars or prisms a a

page_text: are packed together side by side they are subjected to a preserving process as
hereinbefore described. In order to bind together the series of preserved bars or
prisms a band of hoop iron bis placed around the packed bars when they are
partly through a compressing die as before described so as to cross the middles
thereof as illustrated in Figures 2 and 3.
While the partly made block is under pressure in the die a nail c is driven
through holes in the overlapping ends of the clip or band into the wood and the
said clip or band thereby fastened on the block. In this way the several bars or
prisms of wood of which the block is composed are permanently fixed together in
their compressed state and the blocks so made are ready for use.
Instead of making the clip or band of one piece of hoop iron it may be made in
halves the overlapping ends of the half clips of hoop iron on opposite sides of the
block being fixed together and to the block by nails. I prefer however to use the
arrangement represented. When blocks of large size are to be made two fastening
clips or bands arranged in the direction of the length of the block and near each
end may be employed instead of the middle clip represented.
It will be seen by an examination of Figures 1 and 3 that the ends of the fibres
of the wood are presented at the top and bottom of the block and constitute the
wearing surface of the block and as the layers of the fibres in the several bars are
not parallel or nearly parallel as in a block consisting of one piece of wood paving
blocks made according to my invention wear with more regularity and are less
likely to wear smooth than paving blocks consisting of one piece of wood. It will
also be seen by an examination of Figure 1 that when my improved paving blocks
are laid they are separated a distance apart equal to the thickness of the abutting
hoops or clips 6 the spaces so formed between the blocks being marked d. These
spaces & facilitate the entrance between the blocks of the melted pitch or other
semi-liquid binding material or cement employed and the distance strips ordinarily
employed in laying wooden blocks are dispensed with.
Although I prefer to use bars square in cross section as described and illustrated
yet I do not limit myself thereto as bars of any shape which will readily pack into
the figure of a rectangular paving block may be employed.
Where paving blocks of a figure other than rectangular are required they may
be made of bars or prisms of such form in cross section as will when packed in
series form blocks of the required shape.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my invention
and the manner in which the same is to be performed I declare that I claim as
my invention of "Improvements in the manufacture of wooden paving blocks for
paving roads tram lines crossings pavements and for other like purposes'
Making wooden paving blocks by taking a series of square wooden bars or four
sided prisms or bars or prisms of such form in cross section as will readily pack
into the rectangular or other shaped paving block, subjecting the said bars or
prisms to a preserving process and fixing the preserved bars or prisms after they
have been arranged or packed side by side and compressed together by one or more
clips or bands of hoop iron or other fastening substantially as hereinbefore
described and illustrated in the accompanying drawing.
Dated the 6th day of July 1891.
ROBERT YOUNG ARDAGH.