Improvements in Devices for Facilitating the Sketching of Landscape and other Views or Objects.
Year: 1894

page_text: COMPLEIN DI PITICATION
Improvements in Devices for Facilitating the Sketching of
Landscape and other Views or Objects.
I, JOHN RAVEN BRAY WILSON of 45 Havelock Road, Brighton, in the
County of Sussex, Gentleman, 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 relates to a portable device adapted to be supported on a tripod,
walking-stick, or other stand, having an aperture divided into squares or other
shaped spaces or plots and provided or not with a sighting device and if desired
opaque curtains the latter for reducing the effective size of the frame opening.
The invention will be best understood by reference to the accompanying
drawings in which ;-
Fig. 1 is a front view of one form of the device and a portion of a tripod for
supporting it.
Fig. 2 is a sectional view showing in plan the lower rail of the device and
Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the back of the complete device.
Like letters indicate like parts throughout the drawings.
A. is a frame or device preferably square or approximately so, which for
convenience or portability if the frame is of sufficiently large size to necessitate
such a construction may be made to fold up in any desired manner, struts such as A¹
being provided to maintain the corners square when the frame is opened out in its
operative condition. Or the frame A may be of rigid or non-folding construction
especially in the smaller sizes.
BB are preferably elastic cords, springs or equivalent the former secured to the
vertical rails of the frame A and the latter to the horizontal rails. The horizontal
and vertical cords B B' which intersect and form squares or plots B² may either
be permanently attached to the frame A so as to form squares B2 of substantially
unalterable size or they may be adjustably connected to the frame or device in any
suitable way so that the size of the squares may be varied to suit requirements.
A convenient way of carrying this last described arrangement into practice is to
form a number of holes A² in the rails of the frame A and secure to the ends of
the elastic or equivalent cords B B' pegs or pins which may be fitted into these holes.
The pegs B may conveniently be split and exert sufficient pressure in the holes
into which they are fitted to prevent them from being accidentally pulled out while
admitting of their being readily removed when necessary by first pressing the two
members together. According as the squares B' are to be smaller or larger the
pegs B are placed in every hole or every alternate or third or fourth hole A' and
so on, the holes being arranged at any desired distances apart.
The cords B B may be provided with rings at the ends adapted to slide along
rods secured to the frame said rods having notches to receive the rings in the
various positions of adjustment.
CC are the curtains of any suitable woven or flexible material and of which
there may be four; two (C) at the front and two (C') at the back of the frame as
shown, or if desired all four may be arranged at the same side of the frame. Each
of these curtains may be permanently attached at one edge C' to the frame A two
of the other edges C being provided with india-rubber or equivalent springs so as

page_text: to keep them stretched in any position; these springs, however, though preferable,
are not indispensable and the curtains may be formed without them as shown for
example in the case of the lower horizontal curtain C in Fig. 3. The inner
edge C of each curtain that is to say the edge by which the effective opening of
the frame is limited may have a wire or equivalent rod D provided with
eyes D' at the ends through which latter, pins or equivalents D2 engaging with
holes A³ in the frame may be passed for securing the curtains in any desired
position of extension. Instead of the edges C being provided with rods D they
may be threaded or otherwise fitted with india-rubber or other springs or
equivalent and secured by means other than the eyes D¹ and pins D².
E is an adjustable sighting device which may be constructed in any desired
manner that shown as an example in the accompanying drawings comprising two
cross wires E' E the latter (the vertical one) being fitted in the upper end of a
slotted rod E capable of adjustment to any desired height in a grooved standard E
and tightened and retained in such position by means of a binding screw E³. The
standard E may be fitted in the head or table F1 of the stand F by means of a
dowel pin or in other suitable manner so that it may be readily removed to render
the apparatus more conveniently portable.
The stand F represented in the accompanying drawings is an ordinary tripod
but this may be replaced by one of any other suitable construction; or the frame A
and its appurtenances including the sighting device E may be arranged to stand on
a table without necessarily being attached to it.
Instead of the sighting device E being fixed to the stand it may be attached in
any desired manner to the frame A.
The manner of using the before described apparatus is as follows ;-
The frame with the curtains arranged say as shown in the drawings is set up
opposite the landscape or object to be sketched the operator being at the side
opposite to that at which the sighting device E is located.
The paper, canvas or other material upon which the sketch is to be made may be
marked out in squares or plots or not according to the skill of the operator and
these squares when provided, may be larger or smaller than, or the same size as,
the squares B² according to the scale at which the sketch is to be drawn ; that is
to say whether it is to be on a larger or smaller or on the same scale as the
landscape or subject appears within the frame A or curtains C C¹.
The paper or material may be in the form of a block or mounted on a board,
frame or equivalent and supported by the operator or on a desk or easel which may
it desired be made in part with the stand F.
The operator then takes up such a position in front of the frame that when
looking through the device (one eye preferably being closed to prevent inaccurate
sighting) the point of intersection E of the two cross wires E E² coincides with
the point of intersection of any two of the cords B B' after which without moving
his head he looks through the frame with one or both eyes at the object to be
sketched and notes where the various parts of the object are crossed or appear to
be crossed by the cords B B', or the contents of each square or plot B2, and is
thereby able to sketch the same parts on or in the appropriate lines or squares
marked on the paper. The operator each time of taking a fresh "sight" brings
one eye into the same position by means of the sighting device E as before
described so that he may sketch in succession the contents of the various squares
or plots B² as they appear to him with approximately complete accuracy as regards
the relative location of the various parts.
It is desirable for those with less ability to have the paper marked in squares
spaces or plots as before described but others with more ability will be able to
properly locate on the paper the contents of the various squares B³ as seen through
the frame without such markings or squares.
The sighting device may be adjusted so as to bring its point of intersection E
into coincidence with the point of intersection of the required two cords B B¹
according to the convenience of the operator.

page_text: In the drawings I have represented seven cords B and five cords B¹ but it
will be readily understood that more or less of these numbers may be used, the
cords if desired extending completely throughout the opening of the frame at any
distance apart.
The frame A may be secured to the tripod or other stand in any convenient
manner.
The before described apparatus may be modified without departing from the
spirit of the invention for example ;-
Instead of using a single sighting device comprising two cross wires as before
described, I may use two such devices one on either side of the frame and take
a "sight" by them independently of the cords B B¹ or I may use one or two
sighting devices of other suitable construction. Further, the before described
frame may be used in conjunction with an independent sighting device erected at
any desired point between the frame and the "object"; or it may be used without
a sighting device, under which latter arrangement the operator takes the necessary
sight" to enable him to assume the proper position by observing a point of the
object "cut" by any particular part or point of intersection of the cords B B¹
and always bringing these two points into line when sketching the contents of the
various squares or plots B².
66
Instead of forming the cords B B' of elastic they may be formed of substantially
inelastic material and have springs arranged at one end or they may be of wire
but this latter is not considered desirable because of its tendency to bend and the
difficulty of straightening it. The term "cords" used in the claims embraces all
devices for dividing the opening of the frame A or another space into smaller
regular spaces, which latter though conveniently square may be of diamond,
triangular or other form.
Instead of the curtains C C¹ being formed with flexible opaque material they
may if desired be formed of wood or equivalent and arranged to slide on the
device.
Although I have herein described the device as comprising a frame whose
opening or aperture is divided into regular spaces it will be obvious that since it
is the divided aperture which constitutes the chief feature of the invention it will
be seen that the frame or device which carries or forms it may be modified very
considerably without departing from the spirit of the invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is ;-
1. In a device for the purpose specified the employment of cross cords forming
a series of regular spaces or plots substantially as described.
2. In a device for the purpose specified the employment of a frame whose
opening is divided into regular spaces or plots substantially as described and
illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
3. For facilitating sketching the combination with a paper or other sketching
surface divided into regular spaces or plots of a device through which is viewed
the object to be sketched comprising cross cords such as B B₁ forming a series of
corresponding spaces or plots.
4. In a device for the purpose specified the combination with a frame whose
opening is divided into equal spaces or plots by cords such as B B' of adjustable
curtains such as C C' substantially as described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
5. In a device for the purpose specified the combination with a frame whose
opening is divided into equal spaces or plots of a sighting device substantially as
described.
6. In a device for the purpose specified the combination with a frame of
adjustable cords curtains and sighting device substantially as described and
illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

page_text: 7. The combination and arrangement of parts constituting the complete device
for facilitating sketching substantially as described and illustrated in the accom-
panying drawings.
Dated this 24th day of March 1894.
JOHN RAVEN BRAY WILSON.
W. P. Thompson & Boult,
Agents for the Applicant.