Improvements in or connected with Ships' and other Berths, Sofas, and other Furniture.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 13th Nov., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 13th Aug., 1892-Accepted, 8th Oct., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with Ships' and other Berths, Sofas,
and other Furniture.
I, GEORGE DANIEL HALL, of 41, Frodsham Street, Birkenhead, in the County
of Chester, Joiner, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
This invention has, amongst other things, for its object, to provide ships' and
other berths, sofas, and other like furniture, with simple and improved means of
or for fixing, stowing, and otherwise changing their position, and to otherwise
arrange and construct them to effect certain ends hereinafter explained; parts'
of the invention being suitable for fixing, holding, and releasing, other movable
furniture.
For convenience of description I will describe the nature of my invention as
applied to ships' berths and sofas, and particularly those which are adapted to
swing down out of the horizontal plane, into the vertical one.
In such a case I provide in connection with a bulkhead, or other support,
fittings in the form of movable catches, one being provided at each end; and in
connection with the berth frame 1 provide a device by which said catches are
operated, that is to say, so moved as to automatically catch and hold the berth
when it is moved up in the horizontal position, and disengage it in the action of
turning or folding it down.
The said catches are hinged or otherwise suitably mounted, whilst the device on
the berth or other frame is fixed, and, in one form, comprises projections or pro-
jecting parts at different levels, the upper one being adapted to engage with the
catches, and the other or others to act as the means of automatically disengaging
and placing the catch in position ready for re-engaging.
When these movable or folding frames are adapted to be used either as sofa,
berth, sofa-back to a lower sofa or berth frame, I provide a lee rail in connection
with it at the outside, and hinge such rail so that it will turn inwards, and be
stowed, when not wanted, or stand vertically, or turn outwards so as to extend the
width of the berth or sofa, or either of them. To hold this lee board in the
vertical position, I provide catches-preferably automatic-upon a bulkhead or
other support; and I also provide a projection or part on the lee board, to actuate
and engage with the catches when erected. In cases in which the lee board is
adapted to turn outward and extend the berth or sofa, these catches are in
duplex form, and so adapted that the lee board will engage with them when
moved in any direction. When the lee board is turned inwards and stowed, it
lies beneath the cushion, or clothes, of the berth, as the case may be.
The parts or features above described may be transposed, if desired, that is,
the converse arrangements thereof used in lieu of the ones specified.
The above arrangements are very suitable for ships' fittings, wherein two berths
or sofas are used one above the other, and the upper one folds down and forms the
back to the sofa beneath. In such a case, I provide on the lower berth or sofa a
lee rail adapted to be moved upwards above the level of the sofa or berth, and
fold down level therewith, or below its level. This rail consists of a bar or the
like, connected to links which are secured to the berth frame or other suitable
part, said links and bar, or the like, being arranged to have their movement in the
vertical plane. To enable this rail to be lifted or moved upwards, suitable
recesses may be provided in or in connection with the berth frame, when necessary,
in which the fingers may be inserted to take hold of it,

page_text: 1 may provide, in conjunction with this lee board, a catch which automatically
engages said board in the action of raising it and holds it in position.
The improvements herein described connected with the movable or folding berth
or sofa, may be applied to ships' and other folding shelves, doors, lids, covers, and
the like; and they may be modified and arranged in different ways from those
particularly specified, without departing from the general spirit and scope of
the invention.
Dated this 12th dev of Naramber 1901
CHEESBROUGH & ROYSTON, Fels. Chart. Inst. P.A.,
15, Water Street, Liverpool, Applicant's Patent Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with Ships' and other Berths, Sofas,
and other Furniture.
I, GEORGE DANIEL HALL, of 41, Frodsham Street, Birkenhead, in the County
of Chester, Joiner, 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 :-
This invention has, amongst other things, for its object, to provide ships' and
other berths, sofas, and other like furniture, with simple and improved means of,
or for, fixing, stowing, and otherwise changing their position, and to otherwise
arrange and construct them to effect certain ends hereinafter explained; parts of
the invention being suitable for fixing, holding, and releasing, other movable
furniture.
.
For convenience of description I will describe the nature of my invention as
applied to ships' berths and sofas, and particularly those which are adapted to
swing down out of the horizontal plane, into the vertical one.
In such a case I provide in connection with a bulkhead, or other support,
fittings in the form of movable catches, one being provided at each end; and in
connection with the berth frame I provide a device by which said catches are
operated, that is to say, so moved as to automatically catch and bold the berth
when it is moved up in the horizontal position, and disengage in the action of
turning or folding it down.
The said catches are hinged or otherwise suitably mounted, whilst the device on
the berth or other frame is fixed, and, in one form, comprises projections, or pro-
jecting parts at different levels, the upper one being adapted to engage with the
catches, and the other or others to act as the means of automatically disengaging
and placing the catch in position ready for re-engaging.
When these movable or folding frames are adapted to be used either as sofa,
berth, sofa-back to a lower sofa, or berth frame, I provide a lee rail in connection
with it at the outside, and hinge such rail so that it will turn inwards, and be
stowed, when not wanted, or stand vertically, or turn outwards so as to extend the
width of the berth or sofa, or either of them. To hold this lee board in the
vertical position, I provide catches-preferably automatic-upon a bulkhead or
other support; and I also provide a projection or part on the lee board, to actunte
and engage with the catches when erected. In cases in which the lee board is
adapted to turn outward and extend the width of the berth or sofa, these catches
are in duplex form, and so adapted that the lee board will engage with them when
moved in any direction. When the lee board is turned inwards and stowed, it lies
beneath the cushion, or clothes, of the berth, as the case may be.
The parts or features above described may be transposed, if desired, that is, the
converse arrangement thereof used in lieu of the one specified.
The above arrangements are very suitable for ships' fittings, wherein two
berths or sofas are used one above the other, and the upper one folds down and

page_text: forms the back to the sofa beneath. In such a case, I provide on the lower berth
or sofa a lee rail adapted to be moved upwards above the level of the sofa or
berth, and fold down level therewith, or below its level. This rail consists of a
bar or the like, connected to links which are secured to the berth frame or other
suitable part, said links and bar, or the like, being arranged to have their move-
ment in the vertical plane. To enable this rail to be lifted or moved upwards,
suitable recesses may be provided in or in connection with the berth frame, when
necessary, in which the fingers may be inserted to take hold of it.
I may provide, in conjunction with this lee board, a catch which automatically
engages said board in the action of raising it and holds it in position.
In the drawings which serve to illustrate this invention, Figure 1 is a transverse
section showing my improvements, there being an upper and lower berth.
Figure 2 is a front elevation of the same. Figure 3 is a side elevation
illustrating the catches for holding the lee board in position. Figures 4 and 5
show two positions of the catches for supporting the outer edge of the upper berth.
Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to the berth shown in the
upper part of Figures 1 and 2, a is the berth bottom, which is of any suitable
kind, and supported by hinges 6 to the bulkhead or other surface c; d is a rail
fixed to the outer edge of berth bottom a; and e is the lee rail supported on d by
the hinges f h are studs or pins provided on the head and foot ends of the
berth a, which engage with the catches k, and by which the outer part of the
berth is supported. i is a projecting piece supported by the plates or bars i¹, by
which the catches k are thrown up when it is desired to lower the berth. m are
catches hinged at m by which the lee board e is caught and held; and n are stop
pieces against which the projections o on the lee board come when being placed in
the vertical position, and engaged with the catches m.
In the action of erecting, that is fixing in the horizontal position the berth a,
it is moved upon its hinges b from the vertical position (shown in dotted lines in
Figure 1), in which operation the projecting pins h strike the jaw ends k¹ of the
catches and lift them about their hinges k³, until the said pins h leave the
catches k, when such catches fall into the position shown in Figures 1 or 4 and rest
upon the stud k³; the berth a is then lowered down and the projections will
move into, and be supported by, the jaws kl.
To lower the berth from this position, it is moved upwards until the studs i on
the plates or bars catch the underside of the catches k, and with a further
upward movement of a said catches are thereby thrown upward and over into the
position shown in Figure 5, they being held in this position by their tails k*, which
come in contact with the stop pieces or studs k. The catches k being thus thrown
up and out of the way, the berth side may be lowered to a vertical position, but
in this act the projecting studs i will have come in contact with the tails of the
catches k, and have thrown the catches back into the horizontal position, and ready
to engage with the projections of the berth when next required to be used and
fixed in the horizontal position.
When
When the berth a is lowered into its vertical position, the lee board e is moved
out of the way about its hinge, that is parallel with the berth bottom.
however the berth is fixed in the horizontal position the lee board e is moved into
the vertical position as shown in Figures 1 and 2. In this action the projecting
parts or studs o come in contact with the under sides of the catches m and lift
them up, and when such studs come in contact with the stops n, the catches m are
free to tall, and engage with the studs o. When this takes place the lee board is
fixed and then can only be lowered by lifting the catches m out of their engagement
with the studs o.
The improvement in connection with the lower_berth p consists in the construc-
tion and arrangement of its lee board or rail q. The construction is as follows:-
The rail g is supported from the berth by the links r, which are hinged at the
upper end with, and at the lower ends with the berth bottom. When the rail g
is to be elevated, and stand in the position shown in Figures 1 and 2, it is simply

page_text: lifted, and the links r moved about their lower hinges; in this position it may be
locked by a hook or catch s, or by any other suitable holding device, either at the
place of the hook s, or to the bulkhead side or other part. In the lower position,
the lee rail and the links lie flush, or nearly flush, with the berth edge, and are
there out of the way and neatly stowed; and they are preferably covered from the
side by a side outer rail t fixed to the front of the berth.
?"
The improved catches herein described connected with the movable or folding
berth or sofa, may be applied to ships' and other folding shelves, doors, lids, covers,
and the like; and they may be modified and arranged in different ways from those
particularly specified, without departing from the general spirit and scope of
the invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I déclare that what I
claim is :-
1. In a ship's berth or analogous furniture adapted to be moved from and to the
horizontal to the vertical position, automatic catches, and means for actuating said
catches when the said berth or furniture is lifted or moved into the horizontal
position, whereby said catches are lifted and let fall and catch and hold the berth
or furniture in the horizontal position; operating substantially as herein set forth.
2. In a ship's or other berth with an automatic catch operating after the manner
referred to in the preceding claim, the combination of means, substantially
described, adapted to lift said catches out of the way by the elevation of the
berth and allow the berth to be lowered; substantially as set forth.
3. In a ship's or other berth, the combination with a swinging or movable berth
of the kind herein described, of the movable lee rail e, and catches m; arranged
and operated as substantially set forth.
4. The catches k hinged to the bulkhead or other surface, and the projections or
studs and i mounted on or in connection with the berth frame, or analogous
furniture, constructed and operating as set forth with reference to and as shown in
the drawings for the purposes specified.
5. The catches m, stops n, and studs o on the movable lee board e arranged and
operating particularly as set forth with reference to the drawings.
6. In a ship's or other berth, the arrangement and combination of raising and
lowering lee rail 9, mounted and fixed to the berth by links r, and operating as set
forth with reference to the drawings.
Deted this 11th dox of Avant 1809
CHEESBROUGH & ROYSTON, Fels. Chart. Inst. P.A.,
15, Water Street, Liverpool, Applicant's Patent Agents.