Improved Means of Holding Window and Louvre Sashes for Railway Carriages and other Vehicles, suitable also for Holding Ticket Windows, Stove Dampers, and the like.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Mar., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 22nd Jan., 1897-Accepted, 13th Mar., 1897
Improved Means of Holding Window and Louvre Sashes for Railway
Carriages and other Vehicles, suitable also for Holding Ticket
Windows, Stove Dampers, and the like.
We, EVERARD RICHARD CALTHROP, of 56 Naylor Street, Liverpool, in the
County of Lancaster, and JOHN CHARLES TAITE, of 63 Queen Victoria Street,
in the City of London, Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
This invention of improved means of holding the glazed or louvre sashes of
railway carriages and other vehicles, also ticket windows, stove dampers and the
like, relates to holding arrangements of the kind in which they are used in
conjunction with a sash, door, damper or the like (hereinafter referred to as a sash)
arranged to slide in a groove, a ratchet rack fixed along one side, preferably the
outer side, of the groove, and a pawl mounted on the sash so as to be capable of
freely rotating about a pin or trunnions so as to engage with any of the ratchet
teeth of the rack and thereby hold the sash in any position in which it may be
placed by hand, the height being determined by the tooth with the pawl is, for the
time being, engaged.
In an arrangement of this kind, according to this invention, the centre about
which the pawl rotates is so arranged that the centre of gravity of the pawl will
be below it so that the body of the pawl will fall by its own weight until arrested
by a stop which may be placed either above or below the centre of the pin or
trunnions by which the pawl is carried. The arrangement is such that when the
pawl is at rest against the stop, its point will project beyond the surface of the
sash frame, so that when the sash is lowered and moved in the direction of
the ratchet rack, the point of the pawl will engage in the teeth of the ratchet rack.
When the point of the pawl has thus been engaged with a tooth of the rack, then
upon allowing the sash to slightly descend, the pawl will be rotated about its pin or
trunnions until a projection at the upper end of the pawl comes in contact with the
side of the groove opposite to the ratchet rack, whereupon the sash will be
prevented from descending further and will be firmly suspended by the pin or
When it
trunnions, from the pawl, which will then be supported at its two ends.
is desired to lower the sash, the sash is lifted and moved away from the ratchet
rack so that the pawl can fall by gravity into the position in which its point will
be clear of the ratchet rack, in which position of the pawl the sash can be raised
and lowered quite freely. By moving the sash away from the rack sufficiently to
press the upper projecting portion of the pawl against the adjacent side of the
groove, the point of the pawl can be forced away from the rack and into its proper
position against the stop should the pawl at any time, owing to dirt, rust or other
cause, fail to
move automatically into the required position by gravity when
released from the tooth with which it was engaged.
In a modified arrangement, designed to enable the sash to be brought gradually
to rest after being lowered, the pawl is connected to the sash by a pin and slot
connection so that the sash can be moved vertically with reference to the pivot pin
or trunuions, and there is arranged between the pawl and the sash, a spring that

page_text: may be of coiled wire or india rubber to act as a cushion and prevent shock, the
pawl stop in this case being arranged to allow of vertical movement of the sash
relatively to the pawl without interfering with the action of the latter.
In a further modified arrangement, the pawl is fixed to a spindle to which is also
fixed the finger piece or lever used to manipulate the sash, the arrangement being
such that when this finger piece or lever is recessed the pawl will be simultaneously
moved from the rack to the spindle.
Holding means such as described may advantageously be applied at each side of
the sash. In the case of a sash that is drawn upwards from a recess below, the
holding means are applied to the top of the sash, and in the case of a sash drawn
downward from a recess above the holding devices are applied to the bottom of
the sash.
Improved Means of Holding Window and Louvre Sashes for Railway
Carriages and other Vehicles, suitable also for Holding Ticket
Windows, Stove Dampers, and the like.
We, EVERARD RICHARD CALTHROP, of 56 Naylor Street, Liverpool, in the
County of Lancaster, and JOHN CHARLES TAITE, of 63 Queen Victoria Street,
in the City of London, Engineers, 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 of improved means of holding the glazed or louvre sashes of
railway carriages and other vehicles, also ticket windows, stove dampers and the
like, relates to holding arrangements of the kind in which they are used in
conjunction with a sash door, damper or the like (hereinafter referred to as a sash)
arranged to slide in a groove, a ratchet rack fixed along one side, preferably the
outer side, of the groove, and a pawl mounted on the sash so as to be capable of
freely rotating about a pin or trunnions so that it can engage with any of the
ratchet teeth of the rack and thereby hold the sush in any position in which it may
be placed by hand, the height being determined by the tooth with which the pawl
is, for the time being, engaged.
In the accompanying drawings Fig. 1 is a side elevation and Fig. 2 an edge
elevation showing a sash holding arrangement constructed according to this
invention. Fig. 3 is a similar view to Fig. 2 but showing the parts in a different
position.
1 is part of a sash frame arranged to slide vertically in a groove 2 and provided
with a pawl 3 which is pivoted in a metal holder 4 secured to the sash and is
adapted to engage with a fixed ratchet rack 5 when the sash is moved towards the
latter.
According to this invention, the centre of the pin 6 about which the pawl 3
rotates is so arranged that the centre of gravity of the pawl will be below it so
that the body of the pawl will fall by its own weight until arrested by a stop 7
which may be placed either above, or as shown, below the centre of the pin 6 (or
trunnions) by which the pawl is carried. The arrangement as will be seen, is such
that when the pawl is at rest against the stop 7, its point 3 will project beyond the

page_text: surface of the sash frame 1, so that when the sash is moved in the direction of the
ratchet rack 5 and lowered, the point of the pawl will engage with a tooth of
the ratchet rack. When the point of the pawl has thus been engaged with a
tooth of the rack, then upon allowing the sash to slightly descend, the pawl will
he rotated about its pin 6 until a projection 3b at the upper end of the pawl comes-
in contact with the side of the groove 2 opposite to the ratchet rack 5, whereupon
the sash will be prevented from descending further and will be firmly suspended by
the pin 6 from the pawl which will then be supported at its two ends, as shown in
Fig. 3. When it is desired to lower the sash, the sash is first slightly lifted and
moved away from the ratchet rack so that the pawl can fall by gravity into the
position in which its point will be clear of the ratchet rack (Fig. 2), in which
position of the pawl the sash can be raised and lowered quite freely. By moving
the sash away from the rack sufficiently to press the upper projecting portion 3 of
the pawl against the adjacent side of the groove, the point 3 of the pawl can be
forced away from the rack and into its proper position against the stop 7 should
the pawl at any time, owing to dirt, rust or other cause, fail to move automatically
into the required position by gravity when released from the tooth with which it.
was engaged.
Figs. 4 and 5 are similar views to Figs. 2 and 3 respectively showing a modified
arrangement, designed to enable the sash to be brought gradually to rest after-
being lowered. In this case the pawl 3 is connected to the sash by a pin and slot
connection the pin 6 in the example shown being carried by the holder 4 and the
slot 6, being formed in the pawl, so that the sash can be moved vertically with
reference to the pivot pin (or trunnions), and between the pawl and the sash, there
is arranged a spring 8, that may be of coiled wire, as shown, or india rubber, to
act as a cushion and prevent shock, the pawl stop 7 in this case being arranged
vertically either below the pin 6 (Fig. 4) or above the pin (Fig. 5) to allow of
vertical movement of the sash relatively to the pawl without interfering with the
action of the latter.
Holding ineans such as described may advantageously be applied at each side of
the sash. In the case of a sash, for example a glazed sash that is drawn upwards.
from a recess below, the holding means are applied to the upper portion of the
sash, as shown in Fig. 1, and in the case of a sash such as a louvre sash drawn.
downward from a recess above, the holding devices are applied to the lower portion
of the sash.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. A sash holding arrangement of the kind herein referred to wherein the pawl
has its centre of gravity below its centre of motion and is provided at its upper
part with a projection, and the sash upon which the pawl is mounted is provided
with a stop against which the pawl when released from the rack falls by gravity
and by which the pawl is held with its point projecting beyond the surface of the-
sash, substantially as herein described.
2. The improved sash holding arrangements constructed and operating as.
hereinbefore described with reference respectively to and shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3:.
and in Figs. 4 and 5 of the drawings annexed.
Dated this 23rd day of January 1897