Improvements in and relating to Roofing.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 26th Feb., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 24th Nov., 1894-Accepted, 29th Dec., 1894
Improvements in and relating to Roofing.
I, LEON DELMAS, of 45 Rue du Faubourg St. Antoine, Paris, in the Republic
of France, Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
My invention relates to slate roofing, which is characterized substantially by the
octagonal and regular form of the slates and by a reinforced hook of galvanized
steel wire which adapts itself easily and without deformation to the laying of the
slates.
With slates of irregular form such as heretofore generally used the workman who
lays them is obliged to turn each of them in his hands to find the direction in which
he has to lay them. In general this manipulation takes place rapidly, nevertheless
it occasions a great loss of time in the case of several thousand slates.
This loss of time is obviated with my slates of regular form, which may be placed
in any direction and consequently without being fitted.
The slate which I employ has the form of a square the angles of which have
been removed to form an octagon having four large sides and four short sides
arranged symmetrically.
This slate is placed upon the roof in such a position that either of the two
diagonals of the original square may be in the direction of the line of the greatest
slope of the roof. Thus the slates placed in the same horizontal line have their
short sides close together and separated only by hooks against which they bear.
This arrangement has the advantage of firmly holding the slates which are thus
stopped each by two hooks and held at their short lower side by means of the said
hook. The slate fixed in this manner is not liable to be displaced.
The improved hook which I employ differs considerably from the customary
hooks by the shape of its head formed by a threefold bend of the steel wire which
imparts greater rigidity and is less liable to be deformed when a blow is given
with a hammer on the top in order to drive it into the battens or the like of
the roof.
Its lower extremity is bent upon itself to form the hook proper, with which
engages the short side of the slate.
This hook may also be constructed in such a manner that the distance between
the parallel branches shall be somewhat less than the sum of the thicknesses of the
slate and batten or the like, and that in the laying the slate and batten may
be clamped between the two branches forming a spring; the extremity of the wire
constituting the head is bent upon one of the said branches to butt against the
interior face of the batten. This bent part is opposed to the disengagement of the
hook by sliding.
The two hooks above described are concurrently employed in slate roofing, but
that first described is preferably utilized for rafters, that is to say, it is fixed upon
the battens opposite the rafters; while the second hook, the head of which forms a
clamp, embraces the batten or the like, after which it is firmly hooked by means of
its bent extremity.
Dated this 26th day of February 1894.
"

page_text: Improvements in and relating to Roofing.
I, LEON DELMAS, of 45 Rue du Faubourg St. Antoine, Paris, in the Republic of
France, Manufacturer, 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 :-
My invention relates to slate roofing, which is characterized substantially by the
octagonal and regular form of the slates and by a reinforced hook of galvanized
steel wire which adapts itself easily and without difficulty to the laying of the
slates.
With slates of irregular form such as heretofore generally used the workman
who lays them is obliged to turn each of them in his hands to find the direction in
which he has to lay it. In general this manipulation takes place rapidly nevertheless
it occasions a great loss of time in the case of several thousand slates.
This loss of time is obviated with my slates of regular form, which may be placed
in any direction and consequently without being fitted.
In the accompanying drawing,
Figure 1 is a perspective view of my tile roofing.
Figures 2 and 3 are sections to a larger scale respectively on the vertical planes
indicated in Figure 1 by the lines 1-2 and 3-4.
Figure 4 is a plan of my octagonal slate.
Figures 5 and 6 represent two constructional forms of my reinforced hook.
The slate a Figure 4 which 1 employ has the form of a square the angles of
which have been removed to form an octagon having four long sides 1. 2. 3. 4 and
four short sides arranged symmetrically, that is to say the long sides are opposite
and parallel two by two, and the short sides are also parallel and opposite
two by two.
This slate is placed upon the roof in such a position that either of the two
diagonals of the original square may be in the direction of the line of the greatest
slope of the roof. Thus the slates placed in the same horizontal line have two of
their short sides close together and those placed in the same line of the greatest
slope are separated only by hooks 6 against which they bear (Figure 1) and upon
which they bear by one of their other two short sides. This arrangement has the
advantage of firmly holding the slates which are thus stopped each by two hooks
one above and the other below (Figures 2 and 3) and held at their short lower side
by means of the said hook b. The slate fixed in this manner is not liable to be
displaced.
The improved hook (Figure 5) which I employ differs considerably from the
customary hooks by the shape of its head & formed by a threefold bend of the
steel wire which imparts greater rigidity and is less liable to be deformed when
a blow is given with a hammer on the top in order to engage it with the lath or
batten c of the roof (see Figures 2 and 3).
The lower extremity & opposite to the head 61 is bent upon itself to form the
hook proper, with which engages the lower short side of the slate a.
The distance between the two branches b₁ and b' is somewhat less than the sum
of the thicknesses of the slate a and lath or batten c, in order that in the laying the
slate a and lath or batten c may be clamped between these two branches 6 and b³
forming a spring; the extremity 64 of the wire constituting the head is hent upon
the branch b' to butt against the interior face of the lath or batten e (Figure 2).
This bent part is opposed to the disengagement of the hook b by sliding. The
second form of hook (Figure 6) has also a head with a threefold bend, but its
extremity 6 forms a point. This point is driven into, the lath or batten and thus
retains the hook in place.

page_text: The two forms of hooks that represented in Figures 2 and 5 and that represented
in Figures 3 and 6 are concurrently employed in slate roofing; but the latter hook
Figures 3 and 6 is preferably used for laying over rafters, that is to say it is fixed
upon the laths or battens opposite the rafters d, while the first hook (Figures 2
and 5) employed in the other cases embraces the lath or batten, after which it is
firmly booked by means of its bent extremity b³.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said.
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is :-
First. An octagonal slate for roofing having four long sides and four short sides
arranged symmetrically as and for the purpose herein before described.
Second. For holding roofing slates, a reinforced hook whose head constitutes
a spring formed of two parallel or approximately parallel branches, between which
are forced the slate and the batten or lath, the final extremity of the head being
bent upon itself so as to be able to butt against the batten, and the other extremity
of the hook being also bent upon itself to form the hook proper, substantially as
and for the purpose described.
Third. For holding roofing slates, a reinforced hook whose head presents three
bends, and whose other pointed extremity is bent upon itself to form the book
proper, substantially as and for the purpose described.
Fourth. A roofing of octagonal slates having four long sides and four short sides,
two and two opposed and parallel, these slates being retained upon the battens or
laths of the roof by means of hooks, whose heads are reinforced by a special bend,
substantially as hereinbefore described and represented in the accompanying
drawing.
Dated this 04th dore of Narambon 1904
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.