New or Improved Means for Applying Electricity for Warming the Seats of Water-closets, Close-stools, and the like.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 15th Dec., 1893
Complete Specification Left, 13th Sept., 1894-Accepted, 24th Nov., 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
New or Improved Means for Applying Electricity for Warming the
Seats of Water-closets, Close-stools, and the like.
I, ALEXANDRE DAMIEN LAGRELLE, of Louvres (Seine et Oise) in the Republic
of France, Machine Maker, do hereby declare the nature of the said invention to be
as follows:-
My invention relates to the communication, by means of electricity, of a certain
amount of heat to the seats of water-closets, close stools, and the like, in order to
render such seats more comfortable than heretofore, and to prevent them from
giving the sensation of cold..
My invention is based on the principle that a certain amount of electrical energy
is transformed into heat when an electrical current passes through any kind of
conductor.
According to the intensity of the current and the less or greater conductivity of
the conductor, that is to say, according to the resistance opposed to the current by
the conductor, the greater or less will be the beat produced.
It will be easily understood that, by placing in the circuit of a current, the
intensity of which is known, a suitable resistance, there can be obtained sufficient
heat for warming such devices as water-closet seats, and the like.
The seat may be arranged in the ordinary way and may receive either below or
above it the electrical devices hereinafter described, and which may vary in general
arrangement and details in order to suit the construction of the seat itself.
I prefer however the following arrangement :—
Upon an ordinary seat I fit a warming seat made preferably of wood. Preferably
also this seat is pivotted or hinged to the ordinary seat so that it can be raised or
lowered as desired. For that purpose
it is furnished with pivots which take into
bearings fixed to the ordinary seat. The electrical current generated either by a
dynamo machine, or battery, enters the warming seat whence it passes to a spring
strip or band which, when the seat is closed down and is being warmed, has its free
end pressed against a terminal in order to put a conducting wire in communication
with a number of conductor coils disposed in connection with the said warming
seat. The number and the diameter of these are such as to obtain the resistance
necessary to produce the amount of heat required for the warming process: the said
coils are housed in a recess in the said warming seat.
A copper thermostat is provided having one of its ends fixed to the seat and its
free end bearing against a spring so arranged as to break the current by the
expansion of the rod of the thermostat when the required degree of temperature is
reached.
For greater safety, and to prevent accident, 1 place a cut-out in the line of
current passing through the coils so as to stop the apparatus automatically should
the intensity of the current become abnormal. The last of the conductor coils
leads to a terminal whence an electrical conductor leads the current out of the
apparatus.
The wires of the resistance coils may be fitted ou very thin leaves of asbestos
instead of directly to the wood of the seat in order to prevent any risk of fire.
The said wires may also be placed in grooves made in the board of the seat and
covered over by a strip of wood for example. This arrangement allows of staples
for fixing the said wire coils being dispensed with. The thermostat may also be
formed by a series of expansion wires connected together at their ends by pivotted
bars or otherwise in such a way as to produce at the extreme end of the last

page_text: element a lineal expansion equal in length to the sum of the expansion of the
individual wires.
In order to obtain a more instantaneous contact and rupture there may be
employed an expansion rod, the length of the free part of which may be regulated
by means of a nut on one end thereof, the other end of the said rod being provided
with a stud which acts on a pivotted spring-urged piece to break the circuit
between the terminal and a spring piece to which the warming wire is connected, or
to release a latch which is acted upon by a spring to enable that circuit to be'closed
by a further spring.
The movements of the seat.on its pivots may be used for opening and closing the
electrical circuit.
It is obvious that the resistance which is to be put into the electrical circuit may
be produced by any suitable kind of wire or plate whether plain or perforated, and
generally that any suitable kind of electric device may be employed for obtaining
the electrical warming above described.
1
.
D
1009
A. D. LAGRELLE,
Per W. H. Beck,
115, Cannon Street, London, Agent.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
New or Improved Means for Applying Electricity for Warming the
Seats of Water-closets, Close-stools, and the like.
I, ALEXANDRE DAMIEN LAGRELLE, of Louvres (Seine et Oise) in the Republic
of France, Machine Maker, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement, that is to say :-
My invention relates to the communication, by means of electricity, of a certain
amount of heat to the seats of water-closets, close-stools, and the like, in order to
render such seats more comfortable than heretofore, and to prevent them from giving
the sensation of cold.
My invention is based on the principle that a certain amount of electrical energy
is transformed into heat when an electrical current passes through any kind of
conductor. According to the intensity of the current and the less or greater
conductivity of the conductor, that is to say, according to the resistance opposed
to the current by the conductor, the greater or less will be the heat produced.
It will be easily understood that by placing, in the circuit of a current the
intensity of which is known, a suitable resistance, there can be obtained sufficient
heat for warming such devices as water-closet seats, and the like.
In the accompanying drawings I represent, as an example only, the application'
of my invention to the seat of a water-closet.
Figure 1 is a vertical section of the apparatus through the centre.
Figure 2 is an underside view of same.
Figures 3 and 4 are modifications of Figure 1.
Figures 5 to 7 are detail views of devices to which reference is made hereinafter.
The seat may be arranged in the ordinary way and may receive either below or
above it the electrical devices hereinafter described and which may vary in general
arrangement and details in order to suit the construction of the seat itself. I prefer
however the following arrangement :-
:-
Upon the ordinary seat AT I fit the warming seat A, made preferably of wood.
Preferably also this seat is pivoted or hinged to the ordinary seat so that it can be
raised or lowered as desired. For that purpose it is furnished with pivots which
take into bearings A' A' fixed to the ordinary seat. The electrical current,
generated either by a dynamo machine or battery, enters the seat A at a (Figures Í

page_text: and 2) whence it passes to the spring strip or band b. When the seat is closed
down and is being warmed, this spring has its free end pressed against the terminal c
in order to put the wire a in communication with the conductor coils d d d.
The number of the said coils and their diameter are such as to obtain the
resistance necessary to produce the amount of heat required for the warming
process the said coils are housed in a recess e in the seat and are fixed by means
of pegs or staples to the underside of the board f which forms the seat.
yis a copper thermostat the end g¹ of which is fixed to the seat whilst its free
end g comes to bear against the spring to break the current of the rod by the
expansion g when the required degree of temperature is reached.
'
For greater safety, and to prevent accident, I place a cut out at h h' in the line
of current passing through the coils so as to stop the apparatus automatically
should the intensity of the current become abnormal. The last coil leads to the
terminal i whence the electrical conductor leads the current out of the apparatus.
In Figure 3 the wires of the resistance coils are fitted in very thin leaves of
asbestos k. k, instead of directly to the wood of the seat in order to prevent any
risk of fire.
Figure 4 shows another modification in which the wires are placed in grooves
made in the board and covered over by a strip of wood . This arrangement
allows of the staples for fixing the wires d d being dispensed with.
The thermostat
may also be formed as shown in Figure 5 by a series of
expansion wires d d¹ connected together at their ends by pivoted bars e¹ el or
otherwise in such a way as to produce, at the extreme end of the last element, lineal
expansion equal in length to the sum of the expansions of the individual wires.
In order to obtain a more instantaneous contact and rupture, the device repre-
sented in Figure 6 may be employed in which is the expansion rod, the length of
the free part of which may be regulated by means of a nut ². The end of the
said rod k is provided with a stud which acts on the pivoted spring-urged piece m
to break the circuit between the terminal o and the spring piece n¹ to which the
warming wire is connected, or to release the latch which is acted upon by the
spring n to enable that circuit to be closed by the spring n'. o designates
the terminal by which the current enters the seat.
The movements of the seat on its pivots may be used for opening aud closing the
electrical circuit.
'
Figure 7, which is a vertical cross section of a seat taken in front of and near
the axis on which it turns, shows, by way of example, how this result may be
obtained. A' shows the fixed seat; A the movable seat covered with the plate f
below which is the hollow space e intended to contain the warming wire d. The
two ends of the latter are connected to the metallic plates or terminals c° which are
provided with contact studs c¹ e passing through the wood of the movable seat.
and coming to bear, when the movable seat is closed down, upon the contact plates 6' b³
of the fixed seat A¹ where the current enters at a and leaves at j. The contact
studs do not touch the plates when the movable seat is raised so that the
current is interrupted at that time.
It is obvious that the resistance which is to be put into the electrical circuit may
be produced by any suitable kind of wire or plate whether plane or perforated, and
generally, that any suitable kind of electric device may be employed for obtaining
the electrical warming above described.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is-
First. The employment of electricity for the purpose of warming the seats of
water-closets, close-stools, and the like, substantially as described, and illustrated in
the drawings.
Second. A seat for a water-closet, close-stool, or the like, having connected
therewith an electric resistance coil d for transforming electric energy into heat

page_text: for the purpose of warming the said seat, substantially as described, and illustrated
in the drawings.
Third. In combination with a seat for a water-closet, close-stool, or the like, an
electric resistance coil d and a thermostat g, substantially as described, and illustrated
in the drawings, and for the purpose set forth.
Fourth. In combination with a seat for a water-closet, close-stool, or the like,
an electric resistance coil d, and a series of conductors connected together at
their ends by movable joints, substantially as described, and illustrated in the
drawings, and for the purpose set forth.
Fifth. In combination with a seat for a water-closet, close-stool, or the like,
an electric resistance coil d and a cut out, substantially as described, and illustrated
in the drawings, and for the purpose set forth.
Sixth. In combination with a seat for a water-closet, close-stool, or the like,
an electric resistance coil d, and an automatic switch consisting of an expansion
rod k, a pivotted spring-actuated piece m, a spring-actuated contact maker, and
a spring-actuated latch, arranged and operating substantially as described, and
illustrated in the drawings, and for the purposes set forth.
Seventh. In a seat for a water-closet, close-stool, or the like, an electric
resistance coil d connected therewith for the purpose of warming such seat and
means whereby the electric circuit is closed and opened by turning the said seat on
its pivots or hinges, substantially as described, and illustrated in the drawings.
Dated this 11th day of September 1904,
A. D. LAGRELLE,
Per W. H. Beck,
115, Cannon Street, London, Agent.
A. D. LAGRELLE,
Per W. H. Beck,
115, Cannon Street, London, Agent.