Improvements in and relating to Wire Chains and Method of Making same.
Year: 1894

page_text: This Print is in accordance with the Original Specification as it stands after
Amendment (under Section 18 of the Patents, &c. Act, 1883), as allowed by
the decision of the Comptroller General of the 11th day of November 1895.
Date of Application (in United Kingdom), 30th Oct., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 30th Oct., 1894-Accepted, 1st Dec., 1:94
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION (AMENDED).
Improvements in and relating to Wire Chains and Method of
Making same.
I, FRIEND WILLIAM SMITH, Jr., a citizen of the United States of America,
residing at 428 Fairfield Avenue, in the City of Bridgeport, County of Fairfield and
State of Connecticut one of the United States of America, Patent Attorney, 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 an improvement in wire chains and method of making
same.
Hitherto a chain has been made in which the several links were composed of wire
the ends of which after forming the loop and eye were spread apart to embrace the
portion of the wire merging from the loop into the eye and thence curled from the
While a chain constructed
outside of the side wires of the loop towards the inside.
in this manner has met with considerable favor, it possesses some objectionable
Among the
features which it is the object of my present invention to obviate.
objections discovered to the chain referred to, may be mentioned the fact that
it is impossible to curl the ends of the wire constituting the link from the outside
completely around the side wires of the loop ring, owing to the difficulty
experienced in working a mandrel inside of the loop, which results in the eye being
imperfectly formed, and the wire irregularly disposed. The consequence is that
the tensile strength of the chain composed of such links is obviously less than one
in which the ends of the wire are curled or hooked entirely around the side wires,
because there is not as much resistance against the ends pulling loose from the side
wires of the loop when tensile strain is applied to the chain.

page_text: Further than this, the chain is easily kinked, and still further is comparatively
restricted in its adaptability in the various arts in which chains are used.
The object of my invention primarily is to construct a chain having greater
tensile strength in proportion to the size of link than has heretofore been devised.
Further objects are to lessen the liability to kink, and to provide a chain of varied
adaptability in arts to which such articles appertain, as for instance, a chain which
will serve as a sprocket chain, owing to the fact that the ends of the wire are so
disposed as not to obstruct the clearness of the loop, and a chain which is admirably
adapted to use with pulleys for hanging window sashes, or similar articles, due to
the symmetry of the two faces of the chain.
With these objects in view, my invention consists in a chain composed of links
the wire of which is bent to form the loop and eye, after which the ends are bent
around and inserted between the side wires at the point where the loop merges into
the eye, and thence curled from the inside of the loop around the side wires in a
plane with the portion of the wire which passed inside of the loop. It further
consists in certain novel features of construction and combinations of parts and
procedure, which will be hereinafter described and pointed out in the claims.
In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a plan of my improved chain;
Figure 2 is a side elevation of the same; Figure 3 is a bottom plan, and Figure 4
is a view showing the eye of one link hanging on the side wire of the next adjacent
loop.
A, A, represent the links of the chain, each link comprising two parts, namely a
loop band an eye c. The loop is preferably elliptical in form, the side wires
being bowed out as shown in Figures 1, 3 and 4. This shape, however, is not
necessary, and might be varied. At one end of the loop the side wires are made to
gradually converge preparatory to the formation of the eye into which the loop
merges. Once reaching each other these side wires lie parallel throughout the
remaining portion of the eye, as shown at dd, gradually bending all the while,
until they reach the point where the loop merges into the eye, which space the two
wires just fill, forming a kind of wedge between the side wires. From this point
the ends are curled from the inside outward around the side wires, forming hooks e e,
which lie in the same plane with each other, and the parallel portions d d and extend
outwardly in opposite directions, the extreme ends extending inward to or nearly to
the parallel portions dd of the side wires.
It will be noticed that a link of this construction is capable of sustaining more
than usual tensile strain due to the fact that the ends of the wires are passed
between the side wires and thence from the inside of the loop outwardly and around
the side wires, the effect of which formation is to lessen the liability of the links
to pull out, and thus increase the sustaining power of the chain over any chain
heretofore constructed, composed of the same sized links. By virtue of this
construction not only is the possibility of the ends pulling out greatly lessened, but
also the burden of strain is thrown upon the loop and eye rather than upon the ends
of the wire, as the hooks at the end extend substantially across or transversely to the
line of draft, producing a tendency to cause the hooks to slide on the side wires
and thus reduce the size of the eye, rather than pull the ends of hooks out straight,
and this tendency is largely counteracted by the parallel portions d d being wedged
between the side wires at the point where the loop merges into the eye to form a
key or lock at this point, the strain upon the side wires tending to throw them
towards each other to cause them to bind upon the interposed ends of parallel
portions of the wire.
Further, these parallel portions close the end of the loop and form a smooth
finish, preserving in a large degree the symmetry of the loop and more especially
the clearance from all protruding ends inside the loop, thus constituting a chain
which may be put to many purposes, as for instance, for use upon sprocket wheels,
the ends being bent out of the way, where it is impossible for them to be caught
by the teeth of the wheel, or with window sash rollers, or like purposes.

page_text: Also the links are susceptible of a finer and more perfect finish upon the
mandrel.
Again, an eye constructed in this manner is shorter than one in which the ends
of the wire are bent from the outside into the loop, as alluded to hereinbefore
and as a consequence when an eye hangs upon one of the side wires, as in
Figure 4, it entirely clears the opposite side wire and cannot thereby become
wedged in any manner so as to cause kinking.
Altogether this invention possesses valuable features of improvement over all
chains heretofore in use, as the tensile strength is greatly increased, and the chain
has greater adaptability than other chains, at the same time being as easily made
and requiring no more wire in its construction than others of the same size and
variety.
said inven-
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what 1
claim is :-
1. A link for chains consisting of a wire bent to form a loop after which the two
ends of the wire converge and are bent around to form an eye, the ends being
passed back into the loop between the side wires at the point where the loop and
eye merge into each other and thence outside of the loop around the side wires in
the form of hooks which lie in the same plane with each other, substantially as set
forth.
2. A chain composed of wire links each of which links consists of a single wire
having a loop formed therein and an eye, the ends of the wire constituting the loop
and eye inserted into the loop between the side wires at a point where the loop and
eye merge into each other, and thence outside the loop around the side wires and
back to the portion of the wire passing into the loop, and two hooks lying in the
same plane with each other, substantially as set forth.
Dated this 30th day of October 1904
JENSEN & SON,
77, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agents.