Iм- PROVEMENTS IN UMBRELLAS AND PARASOLS.” PROVEMENTS IN UMBRELLAS AND PARASOLS.”
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Edward Boyce, of Birmingham, in the
County of Warwick, Manufacturer, and Robert Harrington, of
Birmingham, aforesaid, Warehouseman, for the Invention of "Iм-
PROVEMENTS IN UMBRELLAS AND PARASOLS.”
PROVEMENTS IN UMBRELLAS AND PARASOLS.”
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Edward Boyce
and Robert Harrington at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents, with their Petition, on the 2nd December 1870.
We, JAMES EDWARD BOYCE, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Manufacturer, and ROBERT HARRINGTON, of Birmingham,
aforesaid, Warehouseman, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN UMBRELLAS AND PARASOLS," to be as
follows:-
Our Invention relates principally to umbrellas and parasols the ribs
and stretchers of which are trough-shaped, and consists first of the
following improvements in the parts of the ribs and stretchers of
umbrellas and parasols at which the stretchers are jointed to the ribs.

page_text: 'We form that part of the joint which is connected to the rib by fixing
in the rib a middle bit, having a semicircular knuckle, and we form
the fork which is fixed on the end of the stretcher from a blank, which
when folded is of a size and shape at one end proper to embrace the
knuckle on the rib to which knuckle it is jointed. The other end of
the stretcher fork is compressed upon the end of the stretcher. The
said compressed part not only fixes the fork on the stretcher, but also
serves as a stop which on the closing of the umbrella or parasol
prevents the rib and stretcher closing upon one another further than is
necessary to bring them parallel. The sides of the fork serve as guides
on the closing of the umbrella or parasol and prevent any lateral motion
in the joint. By this mode of constructing and arranging the parts
of the joint a joint is produced which is smooth both on the side which
*comes in contact with the cover as well as that which comes in contact
with the stick of the umbrella or parasol, and the joint does not injure
the cover or stick as the ordinary joint does. The joint works more
truly than the ordinary joint, and the locking together of the ribs which
commonly decurg in umbrellas and narasols having trouvh-shaned ribs is

page_text: in the joints. The guides on the notches may be employed for improving
the joints of umbrellas and parasols having various kinds of ribs and
stretchers.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said James Edward Boyce and Robert Harrington in
the Great Seal Patent Office on the 27th May 1871.
· TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JAMES
EDWARD BOYCE, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Manu-
facturer, and ROBERT HARRINGTON, of Birmingham aforesaid, Ware-
houseman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Second day of December, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-
fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said James Edward Boyce and Robert
Harrington, Her special licence that we, the said James Edward
Boyce and Robert Harrington, our executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as we, the said James Edward Boyce and
Robert Harrington, our executors, administrators, and assigns, should
at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all
times thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully
might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN UMBRELLAS AND PARASOLS," upon the
condition (amongst others) that we, the said James Edward Boyce
and Robert Harrington, our executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment in writing under our or their hands and seals, or under the hand
and seal of one of us or them, should particularly describe and ascertain
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was
to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal
Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Robert Harrington, on behalf of
myself and the said James Edward Boyce, do hereby declare the nature

page_text: of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say :-
Our Invention relates principally to umbrellas and parasols, the ribs
and stretchers of which are trough shaped, and consists first of the
following improvements in the parts of the ribs and stretchers of
umbrellas and parasols at which the stretchers are jointed to the ribs.
We form that part of the joint which is connected to the rib by fixing
in the rib a middle bit having a semicircular knuckle, and we form the
'fork which is fixed on the end of the stretcher from a blank which when
*folded is of a size and shape at one end proper to embrace the knuckle
on the rib to which knuckle it is jointed. The other end of the
stretcher fork is compressed upon the end of the stretcher. The said
*compressed part not only fixes the fork on the stretcher but also serves
as a stop, which on the closing of the umbrella or parasol prevents the
rib and stretcher closing upon one another further than is necessary to
bring them parallel. The sides of the fork serve as guides on the closing
of the umbrella or parasol and prevent any lateral motion in the joint.
By this mode of constructing and arranging the parts of the joint a
joint is produced which is smooth both on the side which comes in
'contact with the cover as well as that which comes in contact with the
stick of the umbrella or parasol and the joint does not injure the cover
or stick as the ordinary joint does. The joint works more truly
than the ordinary joint and the locking together of the ribs which
commonly occurs in umbrellas and parasols having trough shaped ribs is
prevented.
Our Invention consists, secondly, in the following method of con-
structing the top notches and runner notches and the ends of the
stretchers and ribs of umbrellas and parasols by which method of con-
struction any rib and stretcher can readily be removed from the umbrella
or parasol without disarranging any other part. The ribs and stretchers
are provided at the ends which are respectively jointed to the top notch
and runner notch with T shaped terminations instead of the ordinary
pierced ends. The top notches and runner notches are provided with
openings in which the T shaped ends or heads fit and engage. The
head of the rib is first engaged in its openings in the top notch by
presenting the T shaped termination to the said top notch in such a

page_text: position that it makes a considerable angle with its normal position.
By turning the rib into its normal position its head engages, with the
top notch and forms.a secure joint. The T shaped end of the stretcher
is then engaged with the runner notch by twisting it through the
required angle before introducing it into the notch. On loosing the
stretcher it takes by its. elasticity the required position, to secure it, to
the runner. The notches are provided with guides which prevent any
lateral motion in the joints.
Having explained the nature of our Invention we will proceed to
describe with reference to the accompanying Drawings. the manner in
which the same is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in front elevation, and Figure 2. in, side elevation,
a stretcher joint made according to our Invention; Figure 3. represents
the stretcher closed upon the rib; Figures 4, 5, and. 6. illustrate the
manner in which we form and secure to the rib one part of the joint;
and Figures. 7, 8, 9, and 10 illustrate the manner in which we form
and secure to the stretcher the other or fork part of the joint...
We form the half joint on the rib. by means of the middle bit repre-
sented in side elevation and plan in Figure 5. The said middle bit
is marked a, b, a; a, a, being the arms by which the bit is secured to-
the rib and 6 the semicircular knuckle forming the half joint.. The
said middle bit a, b, a, is made from the blank, Figure 4, the said blank
being cut out from a strip of steel by cutting tools worked in, a press,
but the said middle bit may be made from, wire or by casting. The
middle part marked 6 of the blank, Figure 4, from which the knuckle b,
Figure 5, is made is wider than the other parts or arms a, a. The
knuckle b is made from the middle of the blank, Figure 4, by raising
tools worked in a press. The middle bit a, b, a, Figure 5, is connected
to the rib c in the manner represented in front elevation, vertical section,
and horizontal section in Figure 6. The middle bit being placed in the
trough of the rib c at the place where the joint is to be made, the
metal at the sides of the rib is closed upon the ends or arms a, a, of
the middle bit, and the said middle bit is thereby securely fixed in the
rib. The stretcher fork on the stretcher d, Figures 1, 2, and 3, to be
jointed to the knuckle 6 on the rib c is made in the following manner :—
We take the blank, Figure 7, and pierce its ends at e for the joint pin
and also piece its sides and raise therefrom the tongue pieces f, f, as

page_text: represented in Figure 8. The pierced blank, Figure 8, is then folded
at its middle, so as to produce the fork, Figure 9. The upper or fork
part g of the stretcher fork, Figure 9, is of a size proper to embrace
the knuckle 6 on the rib c, and the lower part of the said fork is
trough shaped. The end of the stretcher d is secured in the trough h
of the fork in the manner represented in front elevation, section, and
plan in Figure 10, that is to say, the end of the stretcher & being placed
in the trough h of the fork, the tongue pieces f, f, on either side the
said trough are closed or compressed upon the inner sides of the
trough shaped stretcher. The stretcher fork is thereby securely attached
to the stretcher d. The stretcher d is jointed to the rib c by causing the
part of the stretcher fork to embrace the knuckle b on the rib c and
passing a joint, pin, or wire i through the said fork and knuckle, and
rivetting the said pin or wire as illustrated in Figures 1, 2, and 3.
The tongue pieces f, f, of the fork by which the said fork is fixed
on the stretcher serve as stops, which on the closing of the umbrella
or parasol prevent the rib and stretcher closing upon one another further
than is necessary to bring them parallel, as illustrated in Figure 3.
The locking together of the ribs and stretchers is thereby prevented.
It will be seen by an examination of Figure 3 that on the closing of
the umbrella or parasol the rib c enters the trough part h of the fork
of the stretcher d and abuts against the tongue pieces f, f, of the said
fork, the said trough part serving as a guide. Any lateral motion in
the joint is thereby prevented.
h
Instead of making the middle bit a, 4, a, Figures 4 and 5, constituting
the joint part on the rib by cutting out and raising from sheet metal
the said middle bit may be made from wire, and with the said wire
middle bit a stop may be combined to prevent the locking of the rib
and stretcher on the closing of the umbrella or parasol. Or the
combined middle bit and stop may be made by casting.
This modification of our Invention is represented in Figures 11, 12,
and 13, Figure 11 representing the middle bit a with its knuckle b and
stop made from wire; Figure 12, the middle bit fixed in the rib c,
and Figure 13, the action of the stop k when the stretcher d is closed
upon the rib c.
Figure 14 represents in side elevation, and Figure 15 in front ele-
vation, a modification of the stretcher joint already described. In this

page_text: modification we fix by compression the fork piece 7 (represented separately
in Figure 16) on the rib c, and we make the joint end of the stretcher
to be fixed between the fork piece flat, as illustrated in Figure 17.
The joint end m of the stretcher d is made by placing in the end of the
stretcher, a flat bit n pierced for the joint pin and closing the stretcher
upon it. The flat joint end m of the stretcher d being introduced
between the fork piece on the rib, the two parts of the joint are
rivetted together by the rivet p. The lower part of the fork piece of
the joint serves as a stop and guide as described, with respect to the
joint, Figures 1, 2, and 3.
Figure 18 represents in elevation a top notch and a runner notch,
applied to a stick and the ends of a rib, and stretcher of an umbrella to
be jointed to the said notches, constructed according to our Invention.
Figure 19 represents in elevation, vertical section, and horizontal
section, the rib (or ribs) engaged with or jointed to the top notch, and
Figure 20 represents in elevation and vertical section, the stretcher or
stretchers engaged with or jointed to the runner notch. The end of the
rib c to be jointed to the top notch a, has a T shaped termination or
head made upon it, and the end of the stretcher d to be jointed to the
runner notch e has a similar T shaped termination fƒ made upon it. One
of the T shaped terminations of the rib and stretcher is represented
detached in Figure 21, The T shaped terminations are cut from sheet
steel or other metal and their crosshead curved to the radius of the
notch. They are fixed to the ends of the ribs and stretchers by closing
the troughs of the ribs and stretchers upon the shank parts of the said T
terminations, as best seen in Figures 18 and 20. The notches a, e, are
provided with a series of equidistant openings g situated parallel to the
axes of the notches. The tops of the openings g in the top notch a, and
the bottoms of the openings g in the runner notch e, are closed, the ribs
and stretchers when jointed in their places passing through the open or
uncovered ends of the said openings 9, the said notches a, e, are con-
structed of an outer perforated ring (made as herein-after described) and
an inner tube h upon which the perforated ring is soldered an annular
space being left between the tube and ring sufficient to receive the T
shaped terminations of the ribs and stretchers (see the sections, Figures 19
and 20). At one side of each of the openings in the notches is a nib
or internal projection ³ with each of which nibs one of the arms of the
I

page_text: T terminations engages, and upon which it works when the ribs and
stretchers are jointed to the notches. By means of the said nib, 92 the
vertical motion of the head of the rib or stretcher when jointed to, the
notch is limited. The nibs. 9% of the top notch a are situated on the
right hand side of the openings g, while the nibs g³ of the runner notch e
are situated on the left hand side of the openings g. In jointing; the
rib c to the top notch, the T shaped termination 6 is presented to one of
the openings g in the said top notch in which it is to be engaged, so
that the T termination is situated parallel to the said opening in the
notch, as illustrated at A, Figure 18, and in that position is introduced
into the opening in the notch. The termination having been so
introduced into the opening on the notch, the rib is twisted or turned
so as to place the cross arms of the T termination at right angles
to the said opening. The T termination thereby passes into the
annular space between the outer ring and inner tube of the notch the
T head crossing the opening by which it was introduced as illustrated
in Figure 18. When the T head of the rib c has been so turned into
its place in the notch its cross arms bear against the inner sides of the
hollow notch, and one of the said cross arms also bears upon and is
supported by the nib 9³, the said nib also limiting the motion of the
T head in its opening g. The T head of the rib is thereby securely
engaged with and jointed to the notch. The stretcher d is then jointed to
the runner notch e by engaging its. T head with one of the openings g
in the said runner notch in the manner described with respect to the
rib, that is to say, the stretcher d is turned into the position illustrated
at B, Figure 18, and then introduced into one of the openings g in the
notch. On loosing the stretcher it takes by its elasticity the required
position to secure it to the runner. The metal of the ribs and stretchers
is sufficiently elastic to permit of the requisite torsion for introducing
the T terminations of the stretchers into their notches without producing
a permanent set in the metal. In this way the several ribs and stretchers.
are jointed to the notches a, e. When the ribs c and stretchers & are
engaged respectively with their notches a, e, the sides of those parts of
the openings g in which the ribs or stretchers are situated act as guides
and prevent lateral motion in the joints.
By jointing ribs and stretchers to their notches according to our
Invention no tying-in wire is required, and great facility is obtained in
taking out and replacing the ribs and stretchers in case of breakage

page_text: without removing the ferrule or cover, and without interfering with the
other ribs and stretchers.
We make the perforated ring of the top notch or runner notch in
the following manner:-We take a perforated strip of sheet metal of
the kind represented in Figure 22, and by means of shaping tools we
raise the said strip into the trough form represented in Figure 23. The
internal semicircular projections m of the trough shaped perforated
strip, Figure 23, constitute the nibs marked g³ in the finished notch.
We next bend or fashion the trough strip, Figure 23, into a ring as
represented in Figure 24. The perforated ring thus made is soldered
by its flanges k, k, either to the short tube h, Figures 19 and 25, or to
the longer tube h, Figures 18 and 20 according as a top notch or a
runner notch is to be made, the said ring being secured on the said
tubes in the respective positions represented. The notch is finished by
means of the bead 1, Figure 26. This bead is marked in Figures 18,
19, and 20, and is situated at the upper side of the perforated ring of the
top notch, and. at the lower side of the perforated ring of the runner
notch, the said bead serving to close or cover those ends of the openings g
which are required to be closed. Instead of providing one side of each
of the openings g in the notches with a nib or internal projection for
supporting the head of the rib or stretcher, and confining it in its place,
the perforated ring of the notches may be provided with a continuous
nib or corrugation, so that the head of the rib or stretcher is supported
on both sides of the opening in the notch in which it is engaged.
A top notch and a runner notch provided with a continuous nib or
corrugation of this kind are represented in elevation in Figures 27
and 28, the continuous nib or corrugation being marked n. It will be
seen by an examination of the said Figures 27 and 28 that each cross
arm of the T head of the rib c or stretcher d rests upon or against a nib
or corrugation n, the nibs or corrugation being situated on either sides
the opening g in which the rib or stretcher is engaged.
Figure 29 represents the pierced blank, and Figure 30 the trough
shaped blank from which the perforated rings of the notches are made.
The sectional figure of the trough blank, Figure 30, is somewhat different
from that of the trough blank, Figure 23, the finished notch having a
conical figure externally. The corrugation or nib in the trough blank,
Figure 30, is marked n. The notches, Figures 27 and 28 are made up in

page_text: це
and 20.
ԱԵՏՆԵԱ with respect to
Ե motenes Figures 10, 19,
Although we have represented our improvements in connection with
trough shaped ribs and stretchers, yet we wish it to be understood that
our improvements are also applicable to other ribs and stretchers.
Having now described the nature of our Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, we wish it to be understood that
we do not limit ourselves to the precise details herein described and
illustrated, as the same may be varied without departing from the nature
of our Invention; but we claim as our Invention,--
Firstly. The improvements in the construction of the stretcher joints
of umbrellas and parasols, herein-before described and illustrated in
Figures 1 to 10, both inclusive, of the accompanying Drawings, that is to
say, forming that part of the joint which is connected to the rib of a
middle bit having a semicircular knuckle, the said middle bit being.
fixed in the rib by compressing portions of the rib upon it, and forming
the fork on the end of the stretcher to be jointed to the knuckle on the rib
from a blank, which when folded forms the fork and also a trough piece,
which is fixed on the stretcher by compression, the said trough piece of
the fork preventing the locking together of the rib and stretcher and
also preventing lateral motion in the joint, substantially as described and
illustrated.
Secondly. Combining with the middle bit which forms the half joint.
on the rib a stop for preventing the locking together of the rib and
stretcher on the closing of the umbrella or parasol, substantially as
herein-before described and illustrated in Figures 11, 12, and 13 of the
accompanying Drawings.
Thirdly. The construction and combination of the parts of stretcher
joints, herein-before described and illustrated in Figures 14, 15, 16,
and 17 of the accompanying Drawings.
Fourthly. The improvements in constructing top notches and runner
notches and the ends of the ribs and stretchers of umbrellas and parasols
herein-before described and illustrated in Figures 18 to 30, both inclusive,
of the accompanying Drawings, that is to say, making the said notches
with a series of equidistant openings parallel to the axes of the notches,
the said openings communicating with an annular space between the

page_text: perforated ring and the tube of which the notch is composed, and making
the ends of the ribs and stretchers to be jointed to the said notches with
Tshaped terminations or heads for engaging the said ribs and stretchers
with or jointing them to the said notches, the parts of the said notches
and the T terminations or heads of the ribs and stretchers being con-
structed, arranged, and combined together, substantially as described and
illustrated
perforated ring and the tube of which the notch is composed, and making
the ends of the ribs and stretchers to be jointed to the said notches with
T shaped terminations or heads for engaging the said ribs and stretchers
with or jointing them to the said notches, the parts of the said notches
and the T terminations or heads of the ribs and stretchers being con-
structed, arranged, and combined together, substantially as described and
illustrated.
In witness whereof, I, the said Robert Harrington, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-fifth day of May, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one.
Witness.
RICHARD SKERRETT,
Clerk to George Shaw,
Birmingham.
ROBERT HARRINGTON. (L.S.)