Improvements in Hands for Dolls.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 15th Sept., 1890-Accepted, 15th Nov., 1890
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Hands for Dolls.
I, MATTHEW WILLIAM ALDERSON, of Braintree, in the County of Norfolk, and
State of Massachusetts, United States of America, Inventor, 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 doll's hands and has for its object to
provide such members of a doll with jointed or movable fingers whereby the hands
may be made to hold various articles.
To this end, my invention consists in certain features of construction and com-
bination of parts, as is hereinafter described and indicated in the claims.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this
Specification in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all
of the figures.
Fig. I is a front elevation of the upper portion of a doll's body partly in section
with the improved hands connected to the arms.
Fig. 2 is an enlarged detached view of the hand and fore-arm of a doll embodying
the improvement.
Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of the hand and broken fore-arm, taken on the
line 3-3 in Fig. 4.
Fig. 4 is a transverse section of the improved hand taken on the line 4-4 in
Fig. 3, showing the preferred form of joint of the fingers to the palm of the
hand and
Fig. 5 represents a transverse section of the hand through the major knuckle joint,
showing a different means of pivotally connecting the fingers to the palm.
The hands of the doll are preferably made integral with the fore-arms, dispensing
with wrist-joints the fore-arms A being made hollow of any suitable material, papier-
mache being preferred.
The palm a, of the hand is produced by an upward inclination of the material of
the fore-arm properly shaped, the upper and lower walls of the same converging to
produce a throat where the finger section b, is jointed thereto.
In Fig. 4 the preferred form for the knuckle-joint attachment of the finger-section b
to the palm, a, is shown. This consists in forming opposite aligning recesses. c, in the
side walls of the palm portion a, of a proper size and rearward inclination to receive
projecting rounded tongues, c¹ formed on the finger section b, and loosely support said
section so that it may rock thereon.
The fingers are formed of one piece of material and are bent as shown in Fig. 3,
they being separated slightly froin the second joint d, to the tips to give them a
natural appearance, Rearwardly from the joints d, the fingers are integral that all
may be pivotally supported by the projecting tongues c¹ as before mentioned.
The joint portion e, of the finger section b, is shaped so as to look natural and fill
the space between the parallel vertical shoulders e¹, e², of the rearwardly-cut slot
produced in the top wall of the hand, said joint piece e, being rearwardly and down-
wardly extended as a limb g, to a point g¹ (see Fig. 3) where said limb is bent
upwardly so as to bear against the inner surface of the top-wall of the fore-arm A,
opposite a perforation in the saune, through which a push-button h, on said limb
projects when the fingers are in normal position.
At a proper point to simulate a natural member, the thumb, i, is projected from the
side wall of the hand which thumb is bent upwardly at a suitable point to represent a
proper flexure of the member and project so that the partially bent finger-section b,
will impinge upon it, the first finger 6' and one next to it engaging the thumb-as
represented in Fig. 2.

page_text: The improved hands are preferably used in connection with a doll having joints in
its arms as represented in Fig. 1, the parts being shaped to permit flexure in different
directions, there being ball-and-socket joints formed at proper points to represent
elbow and shoulder articulations.
As a means for connecting the portions of the arms so that they may be moved and
remain where adjusted, the elastic cords m, are provided, preferably doubled strands
being employed.
No claim is made for the construction of the arms, nor their flexible elastic con-
nection, as this is already in use. The manner of utilizing the elastic cords, m, for
operating the jointed hands is one of the important features of this improvement
which will be explained.
The elastic cords m, being doubled, the bight in each strand is hooked over or into
a notch cut at the angle g¹ in the limb, g, of each hand and the opposite terminals of
said strands or cords are drawn through the hollow sections of the arms and into the
body B where they are secured together, they being stretched taut so as to hold all
the joints intact and the finger sections 6, drawn down upon the thumbs i.
It is obvious that if a proper degree of elasticity is afforded the cords m, the hands
will be closed and so retained when the arms of the doll are bent to assume any desired
position; and to open the fingers by elevating the finger sections b, said sections may
be rocked upwardly on their tongue and socket supports by depression of the push-
button h, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3.
In Fig. 5 a modified form of rocking joint for the finger section b, is shown. This
consists in introducing a pin n, through a transverse perforation formed in the palm
portion and finger section of the hand, thus hinging these two parts together.
The provision made for upward rocking movement of the finger sections b, and
automatic retraction of the same affords means to insert and retain any small article in
the doll's hands so that a fan, portmonnaie, reticule, gripsack or any other article of
suitable dimensions may be held in any desired position by the hands of the doll and
be removed at will.
There may be slight changes made in the construction of my improved hand which
will manifestly fall within the scope of my invention as for example, the fingers inay
be separated and each have a limb g, which will engage one or more elastic cords m,
or this cord may be non-elastic and a coiled spring be introduced at some point in the
body or arms of the doll to afford the requisite resilience and tensional strength to the
cords, whereby the same results will be secured as are afforded by elastic cords, hence
1 do not restrict the construction to the exact forms shown.
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. In a doll, the combination with a jointed arm of a pivotally-mounted finger section
and an elastic cord extending through the arm and normally maintaining said pivoted
section in the closed position, substantially as described.
2. In a doll, a pivotally-mounted spring-actuated finger section having a push-
button for throwing said section against the action of the spring, substantially as
described.
3. The combination with the jointed arms of a doll's body, of a hand integral with
the fore-arm, having a pivoted, spring-actuated finger section and a rigid thumb-
portion, a bent limb extending rearwardly from said finger section within said fore-arm
and provided with a push-button projecting outwardly from said fore-arm and an
elastic connection between said bent limb and said jointed arms, substantially as shown
and described.
M. W. ALDERSON.
By L. W., per F. J. B.