IMPROVEMENTS IN DRY CLOSETS AND IN THE APPARATUS OR MEANS FOR OPERATING THE SAME
Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 15th Aug., 1887
Complete Left, 15th May, 1888
Complete Accepted, 15th June, 1888
Operating the same.
We, DAVID MCGREGOR of 21 North Tay Street, Dundee, in the County of
Forfar, North Britain, Shuttlemaker, JOHN MCARTHUR Junior, of 7 North Tay
Street, Dundee aforesaid, Advertising Agent and JOHN MORRISON of Academy
Street, Forfar in the said County, Factory Manager do hereby declare the nature of
the said invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN DRY CLOSETS AND IN THE APPARATUS OR
MEANS FOR OPERATING THE SAME to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to improveulents in the construction and arrangement of
working those closets wherein pulverized slag is used the said slag being preferably
that described in the specification upon an application for Letters Patent by David
McGregor and John McArthur Junior No. 8528 A.D. 14 June 1887 but our improve-
ments are also applicable when other materials of a like nature are used.
In using the slag we employ a box or receptacle at the back of the closet seat.
The said receptacle
mounted in such a position as to give a fall of the material
In order to give
upon the fecal matter by gravity at each time the closet is used.
the feed of material at the proper time and in proper quantity a fluted roller (or its
equivalent) is mounted at the bottom of the box, at a suitable distance above the
seat -The one extremity of the roller has keyed upon it a ratchet wheel into which a
pawl works-The seat is so mounted or pivoted that when it is used a slight tilting
motion is given, sufficient to impart by means of a short rod or arm a feed motion to
the ratchet wheel and thus to give a motion of partial rotation to the roller. The
said roller is preferably so mounted as to act as a valve to the bottom of the box,
each rotation or partial rotation of the roller feeding a supply of slag, or other
material used, on to the focal matter. In order to guide the slag to the proper spot,
a shute is mounted under the feed roller.
In lieu of thus feeding the slag automatically by the tilting of the seat, the move-
ment of the pawl upon the ratchet may be effected by means of the ordinary rope
pull by a suitable arrangement of pulleys or levers and to effect the return of the
pawl a counteracting weight or spring may be used in connection with the pulley
bellcrank lever which may be mounted at the top of the closet.

page_text: As a further modification the rotation of the fluted roller may be operated by
turning a small hand wheel conveniently placed at the side of. the closet seat, or the
ordinary pull up handle may be used for the purpose. The variations in feed can of
course be adjusted to suit circumstances.
For large Institutions where a number of closets are in use, the closets may be
mounted in a line and a single shaft mounted with a number of feeding rollers corre-
sponding with the number of closets, a slow motion of rotation being continuously
given to all the feed rollers by a suitable motive power at one extremity of the
shaft Or, the said shaft may only be rotated upon the using of a scat.
In lieu of a pawl and ratchet wheel for operating the feed rollers bevilled gearing
may be used, this arrangement being more especially applicable when using a small
hand wheel at the side of the closet.
J. H. JOHNSON, DAY & JOHNSON,
115, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow,
Petitioners' Agents.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in. Dry Closets and in. the. Apparatus or Means for
Operating the same.
We, DAVID MCGREGOR of 21 North. Tay: Street, Dundee, in, the County of
Forfar, North Britain, Shuttlemaker, JOHN MCARTHUR Junior of 7 North Lindsay
Street, Dundee aforesaid, Advertising Agent and JOHN MORRISON of. Academy
Street, Forfar, in the said County, Factory Manager 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 :-
Our Invention relates to improvements in the construction and arrangement of
working those closets wherein pulverized slag is used, the said slag being preferably..
that described in the specification upon an application for Letters Patent by David
M.Gregor and John M'Arthur Junior No. 8528 A.D. 14th June 1887, but our
improvements are also applicable when materials of a like nature are used.
In using the slag, we employ a box or receptacle at the back of the closet seat.
The said receptacle is mounted in such a position as to give a fall of the material
upon the fecal matter by gravity at each time the closet is used.
In order that our Invention may be properly understood and readily carried into
effect, we have hereto appended three explanatory sheets of drawings, Figure 1, of
which is a transverse vertical section of a dry closet with our improvements shewn
applied thereto, Figure 2, is a perspective view of such closet shewn apart from any
building or surroundings: and Figure 3, is a perspective view of Figure 1. From
these Figures it will be seen that the back of the closet marked A, constitutes a
receptacle or box into which the ground slag or other pulverized material is charged
and contained ready for use. The lower part of the receptacle A, is constructed and
formed with two curved portions C, between which there is contained the fluted
roller D. The flutes in this roller extend completely across it longitudinally, and they
are of such dimensions, that the quantity of slag or other material contained within
any one of the flutes, that is to say, between it and the lower curved portions C, is
sufficient to be discharged after the fecal matter, urine and refuse contained in the
receptacle E; for absorbing in the receptacle E, for the purpose of absorbing moisture
from and deodorising the same.
The ground slag or other material as it falls from one of the doors of the fluted
roller drops on to the shoot F, on descending from which it is distributed in the
receptacle E. It is here explained that on the annexed drawings, we have not shewn
the means of operating the fluted roller D, as such means are well understood, for
example, in order to give the feed of material at the proper time and in proper
quantity. The one extremity of the roller may have keyed upon it a ratchet-wheel
into which a pawl works. The seat may be so mounted or pivoted that when it is
used a slight tilting motion is given by the weight of the person sitting upon it,
sufficient to impart by means of a short rod or arm a feed motion to the ratchet-
wheel by operating the aforesaid pawl and thus to give a motion of partial rotation

page_text: to the roller. Each rotation or partial rotation of the roller feeding a supply of the
slag or other material used, on to the focal matter, or the action of opening and
closing the door of the apartment in which the dry closet is situated may be used as
the motive agent for actuating the aforesaid pawl.
In lieu of this feeding the slag automatically by the tilting of the seat, the move-.
ment of the pawl upon the ratchet may be effected by means of the ordinary rope
pull by a suitable arrangement of pulleys or levers, and to effect the return of the
pawl a counteracting weight or spring may be used in connection. with the pulley
bellcrank lever which may be mounted at the top of the closet.
As a further modification the rotation of the fluted roller may be operated by
turning a small hand wheel conveniently placed at the side of the closet seat, or the
ordinary pull-up handle may be used for the purpose. The variations in feed can of
course be adjusted to suit circumstances.
For large institutions where a number of closets are in use, the closets may be
mounted in a line, and a single shaft mounted with a number of feeding rollers
correspondingly with the number of closets, a slow motion of rotation being con-
tinuously given to all the feed rollers by a suitable motive power at one extremity
of the shaft of this arrangement a perspective view is given at Figure 3, or the said
shaft may be rotated upon the using of a seat.
In lieu of a pawl and ratchet-wheel for operating the feed rollers, bevilled gearing
may be used, this arrangement being more especially applicable when using a small
hand-wheel at the side of the closet.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is :-
In dry closets the fitting of the lower portion of the receptacle containing the
ground slag or other pulverized material, with a fluted roller which is intermittently
rotated or rotated continuously with a slow motion for the purpose of feeding the
slag or other material to the focal and other matter contained in the receptacle below
the seat substantially as hereinbefore described and shewn upon the annexed sheets of
drawings.
DL
11 1
C 30
1000