CERTAIN IM- PROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND MANUFACTURE OF METALLIC BEDSTEADS, COUCHES, AND SOFAS
Year: 1848

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ROBERT
WALTER WINFIELD, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Merchant
and Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Second day of
November, One thousand eight hundred and forty-eight, in the twelfth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said Robert Walter Winfield, my exors, adñors,
and assigns, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority,
that I, the said Robert Walter Winfield, my exors, admors, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said Robert Walter Winfield, my exors, adñiors,
or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to
time and at all times during the term of years therein expressed, should
and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales,
and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "CERTAIN IM-
PROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND MANUFACTURE OF METALLIC BEDSTEADS,
COUCHES, AND SOFAS;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso
that I, the said Robert Walter Winfield, should cause a particular description
of the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, to be
inrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said in part recited

page_text: Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto mad, w
more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Robert Walter Winfield, do hereby declare that the nature of my said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully
described and ascertained in and by. the following statement thereof, reference
being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters
marked thereon, that is to say :-
The first part of my Invention consists in forming a shoulder on the tubes
or pillars of metallic bedsteads, and casting the corner block on that part of the
tube or pillar on which the said shoulder has been formed. Figures 1 and 2
illustrate this part of my Invention.
Figure 1 represents, in section, a tube or hollow pillar for a bedstead, on
which a shoulder a has been formed; and Figure 2 represents a solid pillar,
on which a shoulder b has been formed. The said shoulders may be formed
in various ways. In the hollow pillar, Figure 1, the should may be formed
by taking a tube, having the diameter a', and drawing the upper part of the
said tube by an ordinary drawbench to the diameter of the part a", or two
tubes, having the diameters of the parts a¹ and a respectively, may be soldered
or otherwise joined together so as to form a shoulder, where the said tubes are
connected together. This last-described method of producing a shoulder is
illustrated by Figure 3, which said Figure represents in section, a pillar so
constructed. The solid pillar, Figure 2, may be constructed either by taking
a rod, having a diameter of the part b', and drawing, rolling, or otherwise
reducing the diameter of the upper part of the said rod to the diameter of the
part
Or the said solid pillar, Figure 2, may be made by welding,
soldering, or otherwise joining two rods of iron or other metal or alloy
of the respective diameters of the parts 61 and 6 of the said pillar,
Figure 2.
Having described the methods by which I prefer carrying this part of my
Invention into effect, I do not think it necessary to describe all the various
methods which may be employed for the same purpose, as this part of my
Invention consists of the use of the said shoulders, and not of the method of
constructing them. I cast the corner blocks (to which the frame of the bed-
stead is attached by dovetail joints) on that part of the pillar on which a
shoulder has been formed, the said casting being effected by the methods
well known and commonly practised in the manufacture of metallic bedsteads;
the said methods being applicable to the manufacture of my Invention with
such slight modification as an ordinary workman is competent to make.

page_text: The second part of my Invention consists in an improvement in the con-
struction of the corner or dovetail joint, used in metallic bedsteads. Figures
4 and 5 illustrate this part of my Invention.
ment.
Figure 4 represents, in perspective, the ordinary dovetail joint of metallic
5 bedsteads; and Figure 5 represents a perspective view of my improve-
In the ordinary joint the bars of angle iron c, which constitute
the frame of the bedstead, are attached to the blocks d, d, by the said
blocks being cast on the ends of the said bars of angle iron.
In my
improvements the bars of angle iron e, e, Figure 5, are attached to the
blocks f, f, by being rivetted or screwed thereto, the said bars of angle iron
being made to extend beyond the said blocks, as represented in the Drawing,
so that when the said blocks are connected with the block h on the pillar 9,
the ends e, e¹, of the bars of angle iron extend over and rest upon the said
block h. In the joint represented in Figure 4, the part d' of the said joint
breaks from the part d at the neck or narrow part d", when the said
joint is exposed to a sufficient strain. When such a fracture occurs, the angle
iron c, being no longer supported, falls; but by my improvement, the angle
iron is supported by the block h on the pillar, when the block h, to which the
said angle iron is attached, is accidentally broken.
I sometimes also connect
the angle iron with the block h on the pillar by one or two screwed pins and
nuts, as represented at i in Figure 5.
The third part of my Invention consists of an improved joint for metallic
bedsteads, to be used in place of the dovetail joint. This part of my Invention
is illustrated by Figure 6. j is a block cast upon the pillar k, but instead of
connecting the said block and the angle iron, which forms the frame of the
bedstead, by means of a dovetail joint, I form a slightly conical hole / in the
block j, by casting, drilling, or otherwise, and I attach to the angle iron a
conical pin or peg m of a size suitable to fit the conical hole 1, and, by inserting
the said pin or peg m in the hole 1, the junction of the angle iron to the
block j is securely effected. Instead of a single hole 1 and a single pin or peg m,
I sometimes make two such holes in the block j and affix two pins or pegs on
the angle iron, but I prefer the use of one hole and one peg, as I find the
junction thereby effected sufficiently strong for ordinary purposes; I sometimes
use, in connexion with this joint, one or two screwed pins and nuts, as herein-
before described with reference to Figure 5.
The fourth part of my Invention consists of a method of tightening the lath
bottom, which in metallic bedsteads is used in place of the sacking of ordinary
bedsteads. The said lath bottom consists of strips or laths of sheet iron
connecting the head and foot parts of the frame of the bedstead, and also of

page_text: similar strips or laths of sheet iron connecting the sides of the frame
together, and crossing the last-mentioned strips or laths at right angles.
Instead of connecting both ends of the said strips or laths to the opposite
parts of the frames, I only connect one end of each of the said strips or laths
to the angle iron forming the frame of the bedstead; and attach the other
ends of the said strips or laths to a loose piece of angle iron, resting upon the
fixed angle iron forming the frame of the bedstead, as represented in section
in Figure 7, and in plan in Figure 8, in which Figures n is the frame of the
bedstead, and o the angle iron to which the ends of the strips or laths p are
attached. 9, 7, are screws which work in concave screws in the frame of the
bedstead n.
2 are shoulders on the screws q, which said shoulders are
situated between the fixed angle iron or frame of the bedstead n and the
The heads
moveable angle iron o, to which the strips or laths are attached.
of the screws 2 pass through the moveable angle iron o by turning the
screws q, q, in a direction proper to withdraw the said screws from the concave
screws in the frame n, the shoulders of the said screws force the moveable.
angle iron to a greater distance from the frame n, and thus stretch or
tighten the strips or laths, the ends of which are attached thereto.
The fifth part of my Invention consists of attaching the ornaments of brass
and iron to the head and foot rails of metallic bedsteads by casting the said
ornaments thereon. I construct the said head and foot rails in the ordinary
manner, and afterwards cast thereon the said ornaments. I do not deem it
said casting, as the
necessary to describe the process by which I effect the
same is well known and commonly practised, and constitutes no part of my In-
vention. I wish it to be understood with regard to this part of my Invention that
I am aware that the ornaments of the head and foot rails of metallic bedsteads
have been cast thereon, but my Invention differs from the method hitherto
practised in the following respect. By the method hitherto practised the
junction of the parts of the said head and foot rails has been effected by the
said ornamental castings, and the strength of the said junction has depended
upon the said casting, whereas in my method of manufacture of the said head
and foot rails the junction of the several parts of the same is effected previous
to the casting on of the ornaments, and the said junctions are not dependent
on the said casting. Figure 10 represents one of my improved head rails.
The rods or bars u, u, are secured together, by rivetting or otherwise, at the
several points where they join or cross each other, and the ornaments repre-
sented in dotted lines and afterwards cast thereon.
The sixth part of my Invention consists of a method of constructing metal
cornices for metallic bedsteads. This part of my Invention is illustrated by

page_text: Figure 11, which represents in section a cornice for a metallic bedstead con-
structed according to my Invention. vis a tube or moulding made of sheet
metal, which tube or moulding is left unsoldered through its whole length at
the part v¹. w is the cornice, made of sheet metal, and attached to the tube
or moulding v, by its upper edge being inserted in the opening in the tube or
moulding v¹. I sometimes strengthen the cornice by putting a sheet of iron at
its back, as shewn at x, in Figure 11; this sheet of iron is introduced with
the cornice into the slit or opening v¹ in the tube or moulding.
The several improvements herein described with reference to the construc-
tion of metallic bedsteads are applicable (excepting the last described improve-
ment, namely, that relative to cornices) to metallic couches and sofas.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner
in which the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I
claim,―
First, the forming of shoulders on those parts of the pillars of metallic bed-
steads, couches, and sofas on which the blocks (which effect the joining of the
frame to the said pillars) are cast, and casting the said blocks thereon, as
herein-before described and represented in Figures 1, 2, and 3 of the accom-
panying Drawings.
Secondly, the improvement on or addition to the common dovetail joint,
herein-before described and represented in Figure 5 of the accompanying
Drawings.
Thirdly, the method of constructing joints for metallic bedsteads, couches,
and sofas, herein-before described and represented in Figure 6 of the accom-
panying Drawings.
Fourthly, the method of tightening the lath bottoms of metallic bedsteads,
couches, and sofas, herein-before described and represented in Figures 7 and 8
of the accompanying Drawings.
Fifthly, the method of attaching ornaments of brass and cast iron to the
head and foot rails of metallic bedsteads by casting, as herein-before described
and represented in Figure 10 of the accompanying Drawings; and,
Sixthly, the method of constructing metallic cornices for metallic bedsteads
herein-before described and represented in Figure 11 of the accompanying
Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Robert Walter Winfield, have hereunto
set my hand and scal, this 28th day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and forty-nine.
ROBERT WALTER
L.S.
WINFIELD.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Twenty-eighth day of April, in
the year of our Lord 1849, the aforesaid Robert Walter Winfield came
before our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the
Specification aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified,
in form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped
according to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Enrolled the Thirtieth day of April, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and forty-nine.