IMPROVEMENTS IN SEATS AND SLEEPING BERTHS OF RAILWAY CARRIAGES
Year: 1883

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Livesey and Fernando Harry Whitehead Livesey
both of N° 2 Victoria Mansions, Westminster, in the county of Middlesex
for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN SEATS AND SLEEPING BERTHS OF
RAILWAY CARRIAGES
"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Livesey and Fernando
Harry Whitehead Livesey at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on
the 13th December 1883.
"
JAMES LIVESEY and FERNANDO HARRY WHITEHEAD LIVESEY both of
No 2 Victoria Mansions, Westminster in the County of Middlesex * IMPROVE-
MENTS IN SEATS AND SLEEPING BERTHS OF RAILWAY CARRIAGES
"
Our invention relates to the arrangement and construction of the seats and
sleeping berths of railway carriages in such a manner as to give improved
accommodation to the occupants, and to facilitate the operations required for adapting
the compartment of a carriage for sitting or sleeping. For this purpose, we
provide under the seat a box containing a suitable mattress, pillows and rugs to
be used for the lower berth, this box being mounted on rollers so that it can be
drawn a little forward from the side of the compartment. The seat itself, which
in the day time covers the box, consists of a light frame which may carry cushions,
and this frame is hinged, so that when the bed is to be used, the seat with its
cushions is folded up against the back cushions. In order to obtain increased
width of bed, we connect the seat frame to the back frame by a jointed or sliding
link so arranged that when the seat is turned up against the back, which usually
slopes forward at its lower edge, both are moved close up to the side of the
carriage.
We construct and arrange the upper sleeping berth in the following manner.
We provide a box which contains the mattress pillows and rugs and which,
during the day, is held close up against the ceiling of the compartment, but
is lowered a certain distance to be used as
a berth.
For the purpose
of raising and lowering the berth we mount, in bearings at the ceiling, a
shaft extending lengthways of the berth. On this shaft, at each end of

page_text: it are fixed a pair of barrels on which are wound two chains or cords, one attached
to the front of the berth, and one passing over a guide pulley and attached to the
back of the berth. About the middle of the shaft is fixed a worm wheel which
can be turned by a worm worked by a removable handle, thereby turning the
shaft and barrels, so as either to raise or to lower the berth according as they are
turned in the one direction or the other. As the ceiling in many cases slopes
upwards from the side of the compartment, it is necessary is such cases to lower
the front of the berth to a greater extent than the back, so as to bring the two to
a level. For this purpose, we make the barrels on which the front cords or chains
are wound a little larger than those for the back cords or chains. When the berth
is raised it is secured in position by a bolt to which is attached a cover plate which
covers the end of the worm spindle, so that the handle cannot be used to turn the
spindle without first withdrawing the bolt. In order to limit the lowering of the
berth and to hold it firmly in its lowered position, we link the two ends of the
berth to the ends of radius arms which are pivotted to the side of the carriage, so
that the berth, in descending is caused to move in the path of a circular are until,
in its lowest position, the back of the berth buts against the side of the carriage,
in which position the radius arms and the berth form together a cantilever
supported from the side without strain on the cords or chains. In order to make
the seats reversible and at the same time preserve a comfortable slope of the seat
and its back, we adopt the following construction. We make the seat and the
back of equal size and shape, fixed together at an angle a little greater than a right
angle. To nearly the middle of each, at each end, we joint one end of a radius,
the other end of which is pivotted to the stationary underframing of the seat, at
opposite sides thereof. In one position of the parts, one of them forms the seat
and the other the back, both being sloped. By raising the parts so that they turn
partly on the joints of the radii, and that the radii turn on their pivots, the
arrangement of the seat becomes inverted, that is to say, the part which was
previously the back becomes the seat, and the part which was previously the seat
becomes the back fronting in the opposite direction. In the middle position of the
parts they form a trough which may have battens placed across to receive a
mattress so as to constitute a sleeping berth. By hinging the two parts together
at their junction angle and providing suitable ties or struts, they can be opened
apart more or less and may be so far opened apart as to present a flat surface to
receive a broad mattress.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said James Livesey and Fernando Harry Whitehead Livesey in the Patent
Office on the 11th June 1884.
JAMES LIVESEY and
FERNANDO HARRY WHITEHEAD LIVESEY both of
N° 2 Victoria Mansions, Westminster in the County of Middlesex "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN SEATS AND SLEEPING BERTHS OF RAILWAY CARRIAGES
>>>
Our invention relates to the arrangement and construction of the seats and
sleeping berths of railway carriages in such a manner as to give improved
accommodation to the occupants, and to facilitate the operations required for
adapting the compartment of a carriage for sitting or sleeping.
For this purpose, we arrange the seats and sleeping berths as we will describe,
referring to the accompanying drawings.
Fig. 1 is a section shewing one arrangement, according to our invention, of seat
suitable for being converted into a sleeping berth. Under the seat is a box A
containing the mattress, pillows and rugs for the lower berths, and in cases where
upper berths are provided, this box may be made deep enough to contain the
bedding for them. The box A is mounted on rollers a so that it can be drawn
a little forward, as indicated by the dotted lines A¹. The seat itself, which, during
the day, covers the box A, consists of a light frame B which may carry cushions,
and this frame is hinged at b, so that when the bed is to be used, the seat with its
cushions is folded up against the back cushions as indicated by the dotted lines B¹.
In order to obtain increased width of bed, we connect the seat frame B to the back
frame C by a jointed or sliding link c so arranged that when the seat B is turned
up against the back C which usually slopes forward at its lower edge, the back
frame C is moved close up to the side of the carriage as indicated by the dotted
lines C¹.
Fig. 2 is a section and Fig. 3 a part plan of the upper sleeping berth. D is a
box containing the mattress &, which, during the day, is held close up against the
ceiling E, but is lowered to the position D¹ to be used as a berth. For the purpose
of raising and lowering it, we mount in bearings at the ceiling a shaft F, extending
lengthwise of the berth." On this shaft, at each end of it, we fix a pair of
barrels ff on which are wound two cords, one from attached to the front of
the berth, and the other from få passing over a guide pulley f³ and attached to
the back of the berth. About the middle of the shaft F is fixed a worm wheel G
which can be turned by a worm g, worked by a removeable handle g¹, thereby
turning the shaft F and its barrels f¹ f2 so as either to raise or to lower the berth
according as they are turned in the one direction or the other. As the ceiling E in
many cases slopes upwards as shewn, the front of the berth has to be lowered more
than the back, so as to bring both to a level. We therefore make the barrels f¹
for the front cords a little larger than the barrels f' for the back cords. When
the berth is raised it is secured by a bolt h attached to a swing plate H, which
covers the end of the worm spindle g, so that the handle g¹ cannot be used to turn
the worm without first disengaging the bolt by swinging the plate H into the
dotted position H'. In order to limit the lowering of the berth and to hold it
firmly in its lowered position, we joint to its ends radius arms K which are pivotted
to the side L of the compartment, so that the berth in descending is caused to
move in the path of a circular arc until, in its lowest position, the back of the berth
buts against the side of the compartment, in which position the radius arms K¹
and the berth D¹ form together a cantilever supported from the side L without
strain on the cords.

page_text: In order to make seats reversible we adopt the construction shewn by the
section Fig. 4. We make the seat M and the back N of equal size and shape fixed
together at an angle a little greater than a right angle. To nearly the middle of
each, at or near each end, we joint one end of a radius m n, the other end of which
is pivotted to the stationary underframing O. In one position of the parts one of
them M forms the seat and the other N forms the back. By raising them so that
they partly turn on the radii m n whilst the radii turn on their pivots, the position
can be inverted so that M becomes the back and N becomes the seat fronting in
the direction opposite to that shewn. In the middle position M and N form a
trough, as shewn in Fig. 5, which may have battens P placed across to receive
a mattress so as to constitute a sleeping berth. The two parts M N might be
hinged together at their junction angle so that they could be opened out as
shewn in Fig. 6 to present a flat surface for reception of bedding. When the parts
are thus jointed together, suitable bolts or catches are provided so as to hold them
either in the folded out condition shewn in Fig. 6 or in the condition shewn in
Figs. 4 and 5.
Having thus described the nature of our invention and in what manner the same
is to be performed we claim in respect of the seats and sleeping berths of railway
carriages
-
First. The combination of the bedding box A. with the folding seat frame B and
back frame C substantially as herein described in reference to Fig. 1.
Second. The combination of the bedding box D the shaft F with its barrels and
cords and worm gearing and the radius arms K, substantially as described with
reference to Figs. 2 and 3.
Third. Mounting the seat and back M and N on radii substantially as and for
the purposes set forth with reference to Figs 4, 5 and 6.
In Witness whereof I the said James Livesey have hereunto set my hand
and seal this tenth day of June in the year of our Lord One thousand eight
hundred and eighty-four.
JAMES LIVESEV