An Improvement in Dress Stands.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 25th Oct., 1899
Complete Specification Left, 28th Mar., 1900-Accepted, 28th Apr., 1900
TRUVIDIUNAŁ SPECIFICATION.
An Improvement in Dress Stands.
ERNEST JOSEPH KESSELS, 9, Twisden Road, Highgate Road, N.W., Clerk, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
It consists in a process of manufacture for making all dress stands to fold up
quite flat. Semi-circle wire ribs shaped to the human figure from the neck down-
wards to the hip have their ends bent over. These ends fit in elongated holes, two
at the time, of two upright flattened tubes, one front, one back, shaped & curved
to the human figure, seen sideways from the neck downwards. The tube-form
uprights are stamped, in two box like counter parts. The ribs are hung in a
vertical position by means of a chain held at their middle point by washers. A
wire bracket hinged, under the first & last ribs, on either side, keeps the chain
stretched.
I, ERNEST JOSEPH KESSELS, of 9, Twisden Road, Highgate Road, in the County
of London, Clerk, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what
manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described in and by the
following statement:―
This invention relates to dress-stands and has for object to so construct them
that they can be folded so as to occupy small space when, packed for transport or
storage.
According to my invention I provide a frame having the outline of the body of
a human figure when viewed from the side, to which frame are hinged curved
wires forming ribs of such dimensions and curves that when extended from
the sides of the said bars at right angles thereto they form a dress stand. When
not required for use the said ribs can be turned so as to lie along the frame in
order to occupy a much smaller space. The frame conveniently comprises two
bars of the required shape held apart at the ends by wires having eyes to engage
the usual supporting rod for the stand. The ribs are connected together by
chains or the like so that when extended they are kept at the proper distance
apart, the ribs at one end of the stand being prevented from moving beyond
their extended position by stays hinged thereto at one end and at the other end
[Price 81]

page_text: to the frame, the whole of the ribs being maintained in the extended position
by stays hinged to the frame and engaged with loops or the like on the ribs at
the other end of the stand.
Referring to the accompanying drawing, Figures 1 and 2 are respectively a
front view and a side view of a dress-stand constructed according to my invention.
Figure 3 is a similar view to Figure 2 but with the ribs folded on to the frame.
Figure 4 is a plan of a detail. Figure 5 is a front view to a larger scale of one end
of one of the bars of the frame of the stand. Figure 6 is a section on the line, a
Figure 5.
bare the front and back bars of the frame of the stand and c the curved ribs
hinged thereto. The said bars are each conveniently constructed of two pieces
of sheet metal bent to a trough shape as shewn in Figure 6 and one inserted
within the other and provided with caps at the ends, the whole being soldered
together. By this construction I produce a cheap rigid bar with a minimum of
weight. The ribs c are hinged by bending their ends and engaging them with
holes e in the bars a, b the said holes being elongated so as to receive the ends of
two ribs as shewn in Figure 1. f are the wires at the ends of the bars a, b
and having the eyes g which serve to engage the usual supporting rod. The ends
of the wires f pass into holes in one side of the bars a, b and bear against the
opposite sides and thus hold the said bars at the proper distance apart, the ribs
serving to prevent the bars moving farther apart. h, i are the chains or the like
for holding the ribs at the proper distance apart when extended as in Figure 1
and are the stays for preventing the ribs from moving beyond their extended
position, the said stays being hinged at one end to the ribs c at the top of
the stand and at the other end to wires k on the said bars. 7 are the stays for
holding the whole of the ribs in position when extended as shewn in Figure 1,
the said stays being hinged at one end to the bars a, b and engaged with or
sprung into loops m on the lowest ribs. By this construction it will be seen that
when the stays 7 are disengaged from the loops m, the whole of the ribs e together
with the said stays can be turned upon their hinges so as to lie against the bars ab
as indicated in Figure 3, the stays j sliding on the wires k. The wires f can
also be turned so that the eyes g are in the same plane as the bars ", b as 'shewn
in Figure 3. nn are curved wires each pivoted at their ends to one of the ribs
and held in position by a loop o, Figure 4, on the rib above, these wires indicating
where to join the sleeves to the bodice of a dress. These wires are connected to
the rib above by the loopso to allow relative movement between the said ribs
when turned into the position indicated in Figure 3.
It will be noticed in Figure 1 that the ribs from the lower part of the stand
to the waist portion and from those carrying the loops o to the upper ones get
gradually smaller radially from their hinges so that their chains h do not impede
their being folded against the bars a, b, but the ribs intermediate of these, that
is to say, from the waist to those carrying the loops o gradually get larger radially
so that when folded their central portions get farther apart than when in the
extended position. This construction therefore necessitates the use of chains or
the like which must be moved upon these ribs so that the latter can be placed in
the extended and folded positions and in order that it can be done automatically
I employ wires p hinged at one end to the bars a, b and at the other end engaging
the ribs carrying the loops o and connected to one end of the chains i the
other ends of which are attached to the ribs at the waist portion while intermediate
links of the chains engage and slide upon the intermediate ribs. By this con-
struction when the said intermediate ribs are folded on the bars ", b, the wires p
are caused to move along the ribs carrying the loops o and at the same time move
the chains along the said intermediate ribs.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, I declare that what I claim is ;-
1. In a dress-stand the combination of a frame and ribs hinged thereto so as

page_text: to be capable of being extended on both sides thereof at right angles thereto
or be folded down thereon substantially as described.
2. In a dress-stand the combination of curved bars, wires connecting the ends of
the bars and ribs hinged to the bars substantially as described.
3. In a dress-stand of the kind wherein curved bars having ribs hinged thereto
are employed, the combination of trough-shaped pieces of sheet metal and end
caps for forming the said bars substantially as described.
4. In a dress stand the combination of curved bars, wires connecting the ends
of the bars, eyes in the said wires and ribs hinged to the bars substantially
as described.
5. In a dress-stand the combination of curved bars, wires connecting the ends
of the bars, ribs hinged to the bars and means for holding the ribs at the required
distance apart when turned to a position at right angles to the bars substantially
as described.
C. In a dress-stand the combination of curved bars, wires connecting the ends of
the bars, ribs hinged to the bars, means for holding the ribs at the required
distance apart when turned to a position at right angles to the bars, curved wires
pivoted to some of the ribs and loops on other ribs for embracing the said curved
wires, substantially as described.
7. In a dress-stand the combination of curved bars, wires connecting the ends
of the bars, ribs hinged to the bars, chains for holding the ribs at the required
distance apart when turned to a position at right angles to the bars, stays pivoted
to the bars and engaging the ribs at one end of the stand and stays pivoted to
the bars and serving to engage the ribs at the other end of the stand, substantially
as described.
8. In a dress-stand the combination of curved bars, wires connecting the ends
of the bars, ribs hinged to the bars, chains for holding the ribs at the required
distance apart when turned to a position at right angles to the bars and means
for moving some of the chains when the ribs are moved on their hinges sub-
stantially as described.
9. In a dress-stand the combination of curved bars, wires connecting the ends
of the bars, ribs hinged to the bars, chains for holding the ribs at the required
distance apart when turned to a position at right angles to the bars and wires for
moving some of the chains when the ribs are moved on their hinges substantially
as described.