Improvements in or relating to Surveying or Military Sketching Boards.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 18th Dec., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 17th Sept., 1892-Accepted, 22nd Oct., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Surveying or Military Sketching
Boards.
I, WILLIAM WILLOUGHBY COLE VERNER Captain in the Rifle Brigade of
the Junior United Service Club, Charles Street London W., do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows
To the surveying or military sketching board of the general shape &
construction as described in the Patent No. 4198, granted me on 21st March 1887,
I add the following novelties. (1) The addition of improved rollers of a novel
design, provided with thumb-screws or nuts, by means of which the rollers are
revolved, & when so revolved, remain fixed without the assistance of clamping
screws. (2) The addition of a ruler for observing directions of objects which is
attached to the board by means of a jointed arm in such a manner as to enable it
to be moved to any part of the board; & when so moved, to remain rigidly fixed
in such position without being clamped.
1
Q
L
1001
WILLIAM WILLOUGHBY COLE VERNER,
Captain, Rifle Brigade.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Surveying or Military Sketching
Boards.
1, WILLIAM WILLOUGHBY COLE VERNER, Major in the Rifle Brigade of the
Junior United Service Club Charles Street, London 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:-
The surveying or military sketching board is of the type for which I was granted
a Patent on 21st March 1887 (No. 4198) and consists of a board, A (Figure 1)
with a head piece, B in which a magnetic compass is fitted, and a footpiece C, and
with rollers D and D' to carry the drawing paper, these rollers working on spindles
in the head piece and foot piece. The spindles in the head piece revolve in collars
through the same and are terminated by milled-headed thumb-pieces, E and E',
the spindles being firmly attached to the rollers by means of small screws, and
(Figure 2). Thus the thumb-pieces, spindles and rollers are all rigidly connected
and turn together. The spindles in the footpiece are either rigidly attached to the
same and work in borings at the end of the rollers or they may be so arranged that
a small spindle projects from the end of the roller and revolves in a collar in the
footpiece. Bent or "sprung" metal washers a, a' are fitted on the spindles working
through the headpiece at the points of junction of these spindles with the rollers,
whereby a strong pressure is exerted between the ends of the rollers and the head
piece and indirectly on the footpiece also, and the rollers are thus made to move
very stiffly when revolved. To revolve the rollers, the thumb-pieces E and E¹ are
turned and the rollers can be made to move with any required degree of stiffness by
adjusting the bent washer or washers or by substituting new ones.
To enable the direction of objects to be observed and laid down on the board, a
jointed ruler E F F is attached to the board, preferably as shewn, at c, or to any
other convenient part of the head piece or footpiece. The ruler is made to work
stiffly by means of bent or "sprung" washers, inserted at all its joints e, e¹ and e²;
thus at c, a bent washer is inserted between the foot piece C and the arm of the

page_text: ruler F; at c', a similar washer works between the arms F and F¹; and at c
another works between the arm F and the ruler E. These washers are identical
in form and in manner of working to those figured at a, a' in Figures 1 and 2.
By this arrangement, the ruler E is capable of universal movement in the plane of
the board and can thus be readily aligned in any required direction and when so
aligned, will remain fixed owing to the action of the bent washers, whilst the pencil
or pen is used to draw a line along the edge of the ruler.
When not in use, the ruler folds up after the manner of an ordinary jointed foot-
rule and is stowed along one or more edges of the board; thus, in Figure 1 the
arm F pivotted at c, can be laid along the footpiece C, the arm F and the ruler E
can be laid along the roller D, and the whole secured by means of a light metal
pawl at under which the ruler E can be slipped.
On the back of the board a circular clinometer G, is fixed, furnished with a
metal plumb-bob, e the movement of which is controlled by a stud, K (Fig. 1).
The magnetic compass is fitted with a moveable index line on the glass & is set in a
graduated ring with a line, n n engraved parallel to the edge of the board.
The board is engraved with scales suitable for surveying or sketching purposes.
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
(1) A novel arrangement of rollers attached to surveying or military sketching
boards revolved by means of thumb-pieces attached to them and regulated in their
action by bent or sprung" washers.
(2) A novel pattern of jointed ruler, attached to the same boards, which can be
readily aligned in any direction, and when so aligned, will remain fixed without
the aid of clamping screws, by reason of the action of the bent washers.
Dated this Sixteenth day of September 1892.
WILLIAM WILLOUGHBY COLE VERNER,
Major, Rifle Brigade.