IMPROVEMENTS " IN WATERCLOSETS.
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Storer, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Mechanical Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
"
IN WATERCLOSETS. -A communication from abroad by William S.
Cooper, of Philadelphia, in the United States of America.
Sealed the 13th August 1875, and dated the 25th February 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Storer at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
25th February 1875.
I, JOHN STORER, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Mechanical Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN WATERCLOSETS," to be as follows:-
The said Invention consists principally of the mechanical arrangements
or combinations of parts herein-after described for operating the water
supply cock and pan of watercloset basins.
The supply cock and water pipe are carried by a projection on the
side of the basin, and the said supply cock is opened and closed by a
weighted lever, the said lever being jointed to the basin and operated by

page_text: a second weighted lever, which last-mentioned lever is connected through
a slotted arm to the tilting pan of the basin. The cranked short arm of
the supply cock lever takes into the slotted stem of the valve of the
supply cock. The tilting pan lever is jointed at one end to the water-
closet basin, and is connected near its middle to a slotted arm on the
tilting pan. The other or outer end of the tilting pan lever is provided
with a weight, which weight also serves to couple the lever to the
vertical hand rod, by the lifting of which the mechanism is brought into
action. The said combined weight and coupling is capable of being
adjusted on the end of the tilting pan lever both vertically and
horizontally, as herein-after described, and the hand rod is coupled or
connected to the weight by a head on its end taking into a socket in the
top of the said weight. The supply cock lever is connected to the tilting
pan lever by the latter working in a slotted arm on the former, but the
said supply cock lever has a limited movement independent of that of
the tilting pan lever. When the hand or operating rod is raised the
tilting pan lever is also raised, and with it the supply cock lever. The
first movement of the tilting pan lever causes the supply cock lever to
partially turn on the water, and the further motion of the said tilting
pan lever depresses or opens the tilting pan, and at the same time causes
the supply cock lever to turn on the full supply of water to the basin.
On releasing the hand rod the tilting pan lever immediately falls and
closes the pan, but the supply cock lever, which is completely independent
of the tilting pan lever during its downward movement, remains elevated
for a short time, and then slowly descends to its lowest position, and thus
gradually turns off the water supply.
The combined weight and coupling of the tilting pan lever is con-
structed as follows:-It consists of two longitudinal slotted parts recessed
on their inner faces for the reception of the outer end of the tilting pan
lever. The said two parts of the said weight and coupling are secured
together by a screw having a fly nut on its end, which screw is passed
through the vertical slot in the weight, and also through one of a series
of holes in the end of the tilting pan lever. The connection of the hand
rod with the said weight is effected by a kind of ball-and-socket joint,
which permits the weight to be freely turned on the lever, so that no
obstruction is offered to the motion of the several parts owing to changes
in the relative positions of the weight and lever.
By the arrangement of the slots in the weight and end of the lever

page_text: great facinity.
It is preferred to combine with the mechanism described a valve cock
which permits the water to flow into the basin for a limited time after
the handle or hand rod has been released.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Storer in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 19th August 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
STORER, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Mechanical
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of February, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the
thirty-eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said John Storer, Her special
license that I, the said John Storer, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said John Storer, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no
others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland,
the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for
" IMPROVE-
MENTS IN WATERCLOSETS," a communication to me from abroad by William
S. Cooper, of Philadelphia, in the United States of America, upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John Storer, my
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or
their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and
ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal
Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the
date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Storer, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to

page_text: be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, that is to say:
=
The said Invention consists principally of the mechanical arrangements
or combinations of parts herein-after described for operating the water
supply cock and pan of watercloset basins.
I
The supply cock and water pipe are carried by a projection on the
side of the basin, and the said supply cock is opened and closed by a
weighted lever, the said lever being jointed to the basin and operated by
a second weighted lever, which last-mentioned lever is connected through
a slotted arm to the tilting pan of the basin. The cranked short arm of
the supply cock lever takes into the slotted stem of the valve of the
supply cock. The tilting pan lever is jointed at one end to the water-
closet basin, and is connected near its middle to the slotted arm on the
tilting pan. The other or outer end of the tilting pan lever is provided
with a weight, which weight also serves to couple the lever to the
vertical hand rod, by the lifting of which the mechanism is brought into
action. The said combined weight and coupling is capable of being
adjusted on the end of the tilting pan lever vertically and horizontally,
as herein-after described, and the hand rod is coupled or connected to the
weight by a head on its end taking into a socket in the top of the said
weight. The supply cock lever is connected to the tilting pan lever by
the latter working in a slotted arm on the former, but the said supply
cock lever has a limited movement independent of that of the tilting
pan lever. When the hand or operating rod is raised the tilting pan
lever is also raised, and with it the supply cock lever. The first move-
ment of the tilting pan lever causes the supply cock lever to partially
turn on the water, and the further motion of the said tilting pan lever
depresses or opens the tilting pan, and at the same time causes the
supply cock lever to turn on the full supply of water to the basin. On
releasing the hand rod the tilting pan lever immediately falls and closes
the pan, but the supply cock lever, which is completely independent
of the tilting pan lever during its downward movement, remains elevated
for a short time, and then slowly descends to its lowest position, and thus
gradually turns off the water supply.
The combined weight and coupling of the tilting pan lever is con-
structed as follows:-It consists of two longitudinal slotted parts recessed
on their inner faces for the reception of the outer end of the tilting pan

page_text: lever. The said two parts of the said weight and couling are secured
together by a screw having a fly nut on its end, which screw is passed
through the vertical slot in the weight, and also through one of a series
of holes in the end of the tilting pan lever. The connection of the hand
rod with the said weight is effected by a kind of ball-and-socket joint,
which permits the weight to be freely turned on the lever, so that no
obstruction is offered to the motion of the several parts, owing to changes
in the relative positions of the weight and lever.
storer & Improvements in waterciosets.
lever. The said two parts of the said weight and couling are secured
together by a screw having a fly nut on its end, which screw is passed
through the vertical slot in the weight, and also through one of a series
of holes in the end of the tilting pan lever. The connection of the hand
rod with the said weight is effected by a kind of ball-and-socket joint,
which permits the weight to be freely turned on the lever, so that no
obstruction is offered to the motion of the several parts, owing to changes
in the relative positions of the weight and lever.
By the arrangement of the slots in the weight and end of the lover the
horizontal and vertical adjustments of the weight are effected with great
facility.
It is preferred to combine with the mechanism described a valve cock
which permits the water to flow into the basin for a limited time after
the handle or hand rod has been released.
I will now proceed to described, with reference to the accompanying
Drawing, the manner in which the Invention may be performed.
Figures 1 and 2 represent side elevations of a watercloset basin, with
which is combined mechanism constructed according to this Invention
for operating the supply cock and pan of the said basin.
Figure 3 represents in vertical section, drawn to a larger scale, the
combined weight and coupling of the tilting pan lever, and exhibits the
construction of the said weight and the manner in which the hand rod is
coupled to the said weight.
A is the weighted cranked lever for opening and closing the supply
cock or valve B. The said lever A turns on the centre d, and its short
cranked arm takes into the slotted end of the stem 6 of the supply cock
or valve B. The supply pipe J is secured to the projection a on the side
of the basin. When the lever A is elevated in the manner herein-after
explained to the position represented in Figure 1, the valve stem 6 is
forced inwards and the water turned on, and on releasing the said lever A
it slowly descends to the position indicated in dotted lines in Figure 2,
and in taking this position gradually shuts off the supply of water to the
basin. D is the tilting pan lever, jointed to the basin at f. The said
lever D passes through a slotted arm or projection g on the supply cock
lever A, the slot of the said arm g being open at bottom, so that the said
lever D on descending may escape from the said slot. This lever D is

page_text: connected by a pin or stud h with the slotted arm i, the latter being
fixed to the axis of the tilting pan of the closet. The outer extremity
of the lever D is provided with a weight G, which also serves to couple
the said lever D to the hand rod H, by the lifting of which the
mechanism is brought into action. When the hand or operating rod H
is raised the tilting pan lever D is also raised, and with it the supply
cock lever A, as illustrated in Figure 1. The first movement of the
tilting pan lever D causes the supply cock lever A. to partially turn on
the water, and the further motion of the said tilting pan lever D depresses
or opens the tilting pan by giving the arm i on the axis of the pan the
position represented in Figure 1, and at the same time causes the supply
cock lever A to turn on the full supply of water to the basin. On
releasing the hand rod H the tilting pan lover D immediately falls into
the position represented in Figure 2, and closes the pan through its
action upon the arm i, but the supply cock lever A, which is completely
independent of the tilting pan lever during its downward movement,
remains elevated for a short time, and then slowly descends to its lowest
position, and thus gradually turns off the water supply.
The combined weight and coupling G is represented separately in
section in Figure 3, and is constructed as follows:-It consists of two
longitudinally slotted sections or parts marked respectively k, k², the
said parts being recessed at 9 on their inner faces for the reception of
the end of the lever D, and also at 22 for receiving the head or
enlargement m of the hand rod H. The said parts k, k³, when adjusted
are secured together by a screw p and fly nut p³, the said pin p being
passed through a slot or through one of a series of holes in the lever D,
and also through the vertical slots r, r, in the sections or parts k, k³, of
the weight. The connection of the weight with the rod H resembles a
ball-and-socket joint, which permits the weight to be freely turned on
the lever D, so that no obstruction is offered to the operation of the
parts owing to changes in the relative positions of the weight and lever,
while every facility is afforded by the slots both for the horizontal and
vertical adjustments of the weight, which are frequently required in
fixing waterclosets.
In Figure 2 one-half or part of the weight G is represented removed,
for the purpose of showing the slotted end of the lever D.
Having now described the nature of the said Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood

page_text: that I do not limit myself to the precise details herein described and
illustrated, as the same may be varied without departing from the nature
of the said Invention, but I claim as the said Invention of improvements
in waterclosets,―
First. The combination of the tilting pan lever D with the supply
cock weighted lever A, the said lever A. being raised by the said
lever D, but depressed by the weight on the end of its long arm, the
said parts being constructed, arranged, and working substantially as and
for the purposes herein-before described and illustrated in the accom-
panying Drawing.
Secondly. The combined weight and coupling of the tilting pan lever,
constructed as and for the purpose herein-before described and illustrated
in the accompanying Drawing.
Thirdly. The arrangement or combination of parts for effecting the
horizontal and vertical adjustments of the weight on the end of tho
tilting pan lever herein-before described and illustrated in the accom-
panying Drawing.
Lastly. The arrangement of parts for connecting the hand or operating
rod to the weight of the tilting pan lever herein-before described and
illustrated in the accompanying Drawing.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Storer, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Eighteenth day of August, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five.
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
Clerk to George Shaw,
Birmingham.
JOHN STORER.
(L.S.)