Thread Spool.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 30th Nov., 1894-Accepted, 5th Jan.,
1895
Thread Spool.
1, ADDISON CONKLING, of No. 172 East Front Street, Plainfield, State of
New Jersey, United States of America, 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 has for its object to convert an ordinary thread spool or spool of
thread or silk into a toy, and this object I accomplish by providing the spool with
a wind sound producing device or "trumpet" which is secured within the bore of
the spool so that the latter becomes a musical toy, and will serve as a plaything for
children. In order that the thread may be drawn from the spool in the usual
manner when the spool is to be used on a sewing machine, without necessitating
the removal of the wind sound producing device from the bore of the spool, the
said device is preferably constructed in such a manner that one end thereof will
serve as a stop against which the end of the spool pin may abut so that the spool
with the wind sound producing device therein may be supported on the spool pin,
and thus the spool in which said device is fixed may be sustained on the spool pin
in such a manner that the thread may be readily drawn therefrom, the spool being
free to rotate on the pin.
The wind sound producing device or instrument is of such simple construction
that it may be so cheaply made as not materially to increase the price at which the
spools of thread may be put upon the market, and as the increased cost is but a
fraction of a penny for each spool, the retail price of the spools of thread need not
be increased, the increased sales of these "musical spools of thread being such
as to make it an object for manufacturers to adopt the invention without raising
the price.
In the accompanying drawings
"
Fig. 1 is a sectional view of a spool of thread furnished with a wind sound
producing device provided with a reed, and thereby forming a small "trumpet,'
the spool being shown as mounted on the spool pin of a sewing machine, and Fig. 2
shows detail views of the reed sound producing device shown in Fig. 1.
Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but showing a slightly different form of reed
sound producing device than is shown in Fig. 1, and Fig. 4 shows details of the
form of reed sound producing device illustrated in Fig. 3.
Fig. 5 shows a spool of thread provided with a sound producing device made in
the form of a whistle, this whistle being shown in detail in Fig. 6.
Fig. 7 shows a spool of thread furnished with a reed sound producing device of
somewhat simpler form than those illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4, and Fig. 8
shows the reed sound producing device shown in Fig. 7 in detail.
A denotes a thread spool provided with the usual longitudinal hole or bore
through the same, and B denotes a trumpet or reed sound producing device which
is to be inserted in the said hole or bore a, the said device or trumpet having a
longitudinal opening 6 for the passage of air, and, adjacent to said opening, a small
vibrating reed c. The body of the trumpet or sound producing device B is
preferably of lead into which the reed c is fixed by casting, or otherwise. To
secure the trumpet device B in the bore of the spool the said device is preferably
provided at one end with small spurs or projections 61 which, by engagement with
the wood of the spool, will hold the said device securely in place. These spurs
permit the trumpet devices to be fitted to spools having slight variations in their
bores by reason of the fact that the spurs will sink into the wood more or less, or

page_text: if the device is of lead the spurs will be slightly mashed down to fit a bore a little
too small for the full reach of the spurs.
In order that a spool provided with the trumpet or reed sound producing device
may be conveniently used in connection with a sewing machine without removing
said device from the bore of the spool, the said device is preferably provided at its
inner end with an abutment or stop which is to come in contact with the end of the
spool-pin and thus sustain the spool in place on the pin. This abutment or spool-
pin stop, in the form of my invention shown in Figs. 1 and 2 consists of a semi-
circular block or stop d formed on the inner end of the trumpet device, and which
is of sufficient extent not only to serve as a stop for the spool-pin f, but also serves
to steady the inner end of the trumpet or reed sound producing device in the spool
so that it will be more securely held in place. In the form of my invention shown
in Figs. 3 and 4, the spool pin stop or block d' is made as a complete circle closely
fitting the bore of the spool and the device is provided with a central opening e¹
through which the air can pass, but the form of my invention shown in Figs. 1
and 2 is preferred for the reason that it may be more cheaply constructed, the air,
in this preferred form of my invention, passing through the space e between the
semi-circular stop or block d and the wall of the hole through the spool.
In the form of my invention shown in Fig. 5 the spool A is counter-bored at one
end to receive the whistle C which has a chamber c', and openings c² for the passage
of the air, so that when a person blows through the whistle or the bore of the spool
a whistling sound will be produced. The whistle C is preferably provided with a
notched plate e, the points of which, by engagement with the wood of the spool,
serve to assist in holding the whistle in place. The hole through the plate c³ and
the adjacent part of the whistle is not so large but that the said plate will serve as
a stop for a spool pin should a spool provided with this form of my invention be
used in connection with the spool pin of a sewing machine in the manner shown in
Figs. 1 and 3.
In the form of my invention shown in Fig. 7 the reed sound producing device or
trumpet B is of somewhat simpler form than the reed sound producing device
shown in Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4, and may therefore be very cheaply constructed, and
although this form is not such that it will be so firmly retained in the spool as
will the other forms of reed sound producing devices herein shown and described,
still, for all practical purposes, this simple form of trumpet device will secure the
results sought by my invention in that it converts the spool of thread or thread
spool into a toy, and the inner end d' thereof will also serve as a stop or abutment
for the spool pin of a sewing machine should a spool provided with this form of my
invention be used in connection with such machine.
From the foregoing it will be apparent that I am enabled to provide a toy for
the entertainment of children at a cost so small that the toy may be given away in
order to increase the sale of the brand of thread or silk wound on the spools, while
the empty spools, instead of being thrown away, as is the usual custom, may be
preserved as toys for children.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
A spool of thread or thread spool, the bore of which is provided with a wind
sound producing device made either in the form of a whistle or in the form of a
reed sound producing device or trumpet.
DL: 00h 1
Namba 1001
WALLACE FAIRWEATHER,
Chartered Patent Agent,
62, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Agent for the Applicant.