CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS TO UMBRELLAS, WHICH RENDERS THE SAME MORE PORTABLE AND CONVENIENT
Year: 1813

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
DODD, of South Ville, Wandsworth Road, in the County of Surrey, Engineer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS His most Excellent Majesty King George the Third, by His
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Sixteenth day of March, in the fifty-third year of His
reign, did, for Himself, His heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said George Dodd, His especial licence that I, the said George Dodd,
my exors, adñiors, and assigns, or such others as I, the said George Dodd,
my exors, adñiors, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times during the term of years therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England,
Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of " CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS TO UMBRELLAS, WHICH RENDERS THE SAME MORE PORTABLE AND
CONVENIENT;" in which said Letters Patent there is contained a proviso
obliging me, the said George Dodd, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and seal, particularly to describe and ascertain the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, and to cause the
same to be inrolled in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery within two
months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent,
as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at
large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
George Dodd, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed, is described and ascer-

page_text: tained in the elevations or plans drawn in the margin of these Presents, and
the following explanation thereof, that is to say:
My Invention is an umbrella, or improved umbrella. so constructed that the
umbrella part may, in fine weather, or at pleasure, be taken off from the
stick and be quickly and compactly folded up or together, and put into a coat
or other pocket or place; and, further, that the stick may be used and applied
to all the purposes of a walking stick, cane, or sword cane, and that at the
will or option of the user an ordinary walking stick (having one of the ferules
invented by me) may be applied to and become the stick or support of an
umbrella. The umbrella or improved umbrella invented by me may be con-
tinued, annexed, or fastened to the stick, and may be folded against or lay
closely along the stick or support (like common umbrellas when not expanded).
Thus render the umbrella, or improvements to umbrellas, invented by me,
equally useful and available to ladies as to gentlemen, it being quite optional
whether the umbrella part shall be on or off the stick. I further, in some cases,
instead of sticks, use metallic or other tubes or cylinders made to slide or pass
within each other (in the manner of telescope tubes or barrels), each tube or
barrel, when drawn out or extended, being fastened or retained in its extended
state by either spring stops, ketches, bolts, joint, or screws, and applied to my
umbrella instead of the usual stick. Sometimes I fasten these tubes in their
extended state by having a female screw in one end. The inner end of said
screw has a square hole or socket fitted to receive the square end of a sliding
plug closely fitting and moving up or down the interior of the tube; the other
end of this plug is a male screw adapted to the female screw of the other
cylinder sliding within the one above described; hence this latter tube, when
pressed downward, will screw on to the plug, the plug being held firm by tlie
hole in the screw at the bottom of tlic cylinder. Near the opposite end
of the largest barrel I have fixed internally a ring with a break in it, the ring
being about nine tenths of a whole ring. Near the bottom of the interior
tube I fix a pin or ketch. When this interior tube is screwed on to the plug
and drawn upward, and the little ketch passes through the break in the ring
and by turning the tube either to the right or left, the little ketch alights on
the upper surface of the ring, and holds the tubes firm in their extended state.
The metalic tubes above described are compressed within a stick or cane,
which renders them portable, as they can be conveniently placed either in the
pocket or in other small space. The umbrella, or improvements to umbrellas
invented by me, may be attached or fastened to any form, figure, or size of
stick, whether straight or crooked, thick or slender, that are in use as common
walking sticks, the description of stick being entirely according to the choice
square

page_text: or fashion of the purchaser.. I attain these objects, by affixing on to the end of
the stick N. 1 the ferrule N. 2, having the sunk groove or rabbet N. 3;
nearer to the small end of the ferrule I have the male screw N. 4, and imme-
diately below, and adjoining to the said screw, I have the shoulder N° 5
round the ferrule, the said shoulder bevelling at an obtuse angle (from the
bottom of the screw) downward into the ferrule. This is intended to case the
passing of the bolt or ketch of the thumb spring over the screw of the ferrule
occuring in the act of withdrawing or disengaging the stick from the
umbrella. And next, I have the brass or other metallic cap N. 6; it has a
hollow cone within, containing a female screw assimulating to the male screw
on the ferrule. In the rim of the largest diameter of the said cap I make the
rabbet and groves to receive the ends of the ribs and wire, as is usual in the cap
of other umbrellas.. Round the top and on the outside of the above cap I have
a male screw (which screw, after the silk or covering is on the umbrella), is to
receive the corresponding ornamental cap N. 7, which ornamental cap is also
hollow or cylindrical, and contains a female screw adjusted to and fitting the
male, screw of N. 6. I further slightly countersink or turn out part of
the bottom of the cap N. 7. as represented in the section of N. 7. This
.counter-sinking is to admit part of the headpiece of the sliding or running
cylinder, thereby giving an increase of length to the stretchers, and causing
a fuller expansion of the umbrella when opened. My next apparatus is
the brass or other metallic cylinder N. 8, which slides or moves up and
down the stick in the act of closing or opening the umbrella or disengaging
the stick from the umbrella. On the upper end of this cylinder I have
the usual heading piece, with a rabbet and groves to receive the end of
the stretchers. On this cylinder, and near the head thereof,. place the
thumb picce, spring, and bolt N. 9, which, by pressing the bolt at the end of
the thumb piece into the cylinder, causes the said bolt, when the cylinder
slides up or down the ferrule and comes over the rabbet, to catch or spring
into the same, and thus fix and retain the umbrella in its expanded state.
This thumb piece and spring answers the same purpose as the spring that
issues from the stick of a common umbrella. The ribs N. 10 of my umbrella
I make of steel, other metal, or whalebone, with steel or other metallic joints.
I unite the stretchers to the ribs by the lug or bridge N. 11, into which the
ends of the stretchers are let or inserted, and there fastened by a screw, pin,
or pivot, so that the stretchers may revolve freely from A to B, and describe a
I sometimes connect
semicircle, the pin in the lug being the axis or center.
the stretchers to the side or sides of the ribs by a screw pin or pivot (and in
other ways), but prefer the above. In order to make the umbrella fold into a
0 small space or compass, I have one or two or more joints in each rib. These

page_text: Joints N. 13, I form by cutting a grove or socket in a parallelogram piece of
steel, iron, or other metal, into which socket 1 let in or insert one end of
each section or division of each rib, and fasten the said ends into the said
socket by means of two pins, centers, screws, or pivots, somewhat apart from
each other, as represented in the Drawing N. 12. I also, in order to reduce
the pull on the said centers or axis of the joints, leave an offset or.shoulder in
the metal, as delineated at N. 13, and this abuts against the lower extremity
or bottom of the joints. This description of joint admits the silk or covering
to lay flat on and close to the outer surface of the ribs when the umbrella is
open or expanded; and when the sections of the ribs are turned over each
other or folded together, as at N. 14, then this joint leaves an interstice or
clear space between the said folded parts of the ribs, which interval or clear
space contains and accommodates the silk or other covering without cutting or
injuring the same. It also accommodates the outer section of the rib when
more than one joint is used. The motive for having more joints than one is to
decrease the length of the umbrella when in the pocket. A large umbrella is
by these means made to occupy no more room than an ordinary pocket spying
glass. I fasten the silk or other covering on to the top and bottom of my
umbrella by sewing, tying, or other methods common to other umbrellas,
but at the same time I increase the security and firmness of this part of
the fastening by tightly screwing down the ornamental cap on to the silk
or other covering. I also fasten the silk or other covering near to and imme-
diately above and below each joint. The method of using this umbrella may
be known or gathered from the above description of the machinery. Suffice it
to say, that in order to affix the umbrella on the stick it is merely necessary to
pass the stick down the running cylinder; then, by turning the hand and stick,
to screw the ferrule into the cap. The cylinder should then be pulled up the
stick toward the handle thereof; next, the umbrella should be elevated (though
it need not be expanded). After these movements are performed, the umbrella
may be used as and in the way of a common umbrella. Taking the umbrella
off the stick and putting it into the pocket is of course effected by performing
the inverse of the method by which it was put on the stick; yet there are
other methods both of taking off and putting the umbrella on the stick,
which it is not necessary here to enumerate or describe, as they are so obvious
as almost instantly to occur to persons using these umbrellas. I sometimes
use a ferrule that has not any screw, in which case I fasten the cap of the
umbrella on to the ferrule in the manner and way in which a bayonet fastens
on to the muzzle of a soldier's musket. Occasionally I use a spring and
bolt, and various other ketches, to effect the above purpose, but I prefer
the screw above described, as it may be made entirely of brass, also is most

page_text: perfectly impervious to rain or water, and is not much subject to corrosion.
To avoid the use of wire in fastening the ribs and stretchers into the rabbets of
the
cap and sliding cylinder, I frequently form balls at, of, and on the ends of
the ribs and stretchers, and insert these into corresponding sockets in the cap,
and in the head piece of the cylinder. At other times, instead of balls and
sockets, I divide the cap horizontally (so as to screw the two parts together
afterwards); I have a separate chamber for the head of each rib to work or
traverse in, and thus I fix the head of cach rib by a pin or center running
though the same, and confined in this chamber. After this I screw down the
upper part of the cap on to its lower part, and thus confine and secure downt
the ribs and their fastenings. This more fully protects the pins or centers
from wet or rain, and also gains in point of strength, as, in the common way,
one wire ties or secures eight or more ribs, but by these means I have one
wire pin or pivot to each rib. I do not confine myself to the joint above
described, as I have used many others, but the distinctive characters of them
all is that they only admit of a semicircular movement, and allow sufficient
space when the umbrella is folded to contain the silk or covering without
injuring the same. 1 occasionally use cross-bared levers, and sometimes
springs fixed to the under side of the stretcher, and playing or pressing against
the ribs to assist in and promote the rapidity of expanding or folding up the
umbrella. In these umbrellas and the various parts thereof I do not limit
myself to any particular dimensions; some umbrellas I make large and strong,
while I construct others small and light to be used as or form parasols.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Dodd, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the Tenth day of May, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and thirteen.