Improvements in and in Connection with Internally Stopped Bottles Used for Containing and Preserving Still or Non-gaseous Liquids or Slightly Gaseous Liquids, and in the Means, Machinery, and Stoppers Employed for Stopping such Bottles.
Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 25th May, 1887
Complete Left, 25th Feb., 1888
Complete Accepted, 4th May, 1888
Improvements in and in Connection with Internally Stopped Bottles
Used for Containing and Preserving Still or Non-gaseous Liquids
or Slightly Gaseous Liquids, and in the Means, Machinery, and
Stoppers Employed for Stopping such Bottles.
I, LEON VALLET, of 49 Everton Road, Liverpool, in the County of Lancaster,
Internal Stopper Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of my said invention to
be as follows:-
The object of this Invention is to effect improvements in and connected with
" bottling "and stopping what are known as still liquids that is liquids of a non-
gaseous character or liquids gaseous only to a small degree such as ale and porter and
my invention has reference to that type of bottle which is provided with and stopped
by what is known as an internal stopper.
A bottle according to my invention is provided with a bulbous neck which is
contracted and is of a circular form at its base above the body of the bottle so as to form
an aperture similar or nearly similar to the mouth of the bottle which is of ordinary
construction and inside the bulbed neck I form a seat or ledge and one also exists in
the inside of the mouth. I use in connection with the bottle two stoppers or a double
stopper having two seats. An elastic packing of indiarubber or other suitable material
is used either in the stoppers or in the seats to make the necessary tight joint between
the seats and the stoppers. The means I use according to this invention to keep the
stoppers on their seats is compressed air which is introduced as hereafter described in
the neck between the two stopper seats by which air tight joints at the two apertures
is effected.
The body or stem of the stopper may be made of Glass China, Lignum-vitæ or
other suitable material impervious to liquids or air. When a double stopper is
employed I insert in the bottle neck a single stopper having two seats and elastic
packings at each end, one part of which may fit and move freely in a hollow part
formed in the other part, so that this stopper can extend lengthways in the bottle neck
and close both the neck aperture and mouth when the compressed air is applied as
above described. When I use stoppers having no elastic packing on their body, for
instance spherical shaped stoppers known as the Ball stopper which may be of glass

page_text: or similar hard material, I form an annular groove inside the neck aperture and the
month into which I insert a ring of suitable elastic packing such as indiarubber or
cork or a compound of indiarubber or cork.
In this case the two round balls are introduced into the bottle neck and are pressed
into their respective elastic seats by the compressed air as previously explained and
form the necessary air tight joint.
The process of forming ledges, and grooves in bottle mouths is well known by glass
bottle makers and therefore needs no further description, except to say, that a bottle
according to my invention requires two seats or ledges or two annular grooves so that
if I wish to form these two ledges or grooves at one time, the part of the tool or tongs
for forming such seats or grooves may require to be of double formation instead of
the single tool as ordinarily used and must be expanded wider outwardly than under
ordinary conditions on account of the bulbous neck coming between the two portions
which form the seats or ledges. The machine according to my invention which I
employ in connection with the above stoppers and bottles is provided with a revolving
bottle holder at the base of which is fitted a plate or holder for the bottle to rest upon
and in the revolving holder is actuated by suitable means such as a handle and spring,
or cam, or equivalent mechanism. When the bottle is filled with liquid it is put in
position in the bottle holder, and by means of the spring aforesaid has its mouth
pressed in a suitable mouth piece making an air tight joint at the top of the bottle
holder, the bottle being in the upright position.
In this position one of the stoppers in the bulbous bottle neck, is pressed in the
seat of the lower aperture by means of a small piston or plunger which projects
through the mouth piece of the bottle holder and enters the bottle neck.
This piston is acted upon by a spring and lever or cam or like mechanism. The
lower aperture of the bottle being now provisionally stopped the bottle is turned
mouth downwards by revolving the bottle holder and the compressed air is supplied to
the bottle neck by suitable means such as an air pump which may be attached to the
machine or the air may be taken from a compressed air reservoir in connection with
the revolving machine, while the bottle is in this inverted position the small piston
which is pressing upon the stopper as above described is withdrawn thereby allowing
the other stopper to fall into the bottle mouth.
The compressed air now exists between the two stoppers in the bottle neck presses
and keeps them firmly on their seats thus making air tight joints and providing
against the exposure of the liquid contained in the bottle to the compressed air.
The bottle is opened by pressing the upper stopper into the Bottle mouth, the lower
stopper being at the same time released by the escape of the compressed air from the
bottle neck. When the bottle is decanted which is done in the usual way the stoppers
range themselves in the large part of the neck and allow the liquid to pass freely out.
A suitable opener to be used for pressing in the stopper may consist of a tapered
stem covered with india rubber which will serve also as an effectual stopper for
externally closing the bottle, when its contents are not all decanted at once or when
otherwise required.
Dated th
1007

page_text: Improvements in and in Connection with Internally Stopped Bottles
Used for Containing and Preserving Still or Non-gaseous Liquids
or Slightly Gaseous Liquids, and in the Means, Machinery, and
Stoppers Employed for Stopping such Bottles.
I, LÉON VALLET, of 49 Everton Road, Liverpool, in the County of Lancaster,
Internal Stopper Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of my said invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:-
The object of this Invention is to effect improvements in and connected with bottling
and stopping what are known as still liquids of a non gaseous character, or liquids
gaseous only to a small degree such as ale and porter and my Invention has reference
to that type of bottle which is provided with and stopped by what is known as an
internal stopper.
A bottle according to my Invention is provided with a bulbous neck which is
contracted and is of a circular form at its base above the body of the bottle so as to
form an aperture similar, or nearly similar to the mouth of the bottle which is of
ordinary construction and inside the bulbed neck I form a seat, or ledge and one also
exists in the inside of the mouth. I use in connection with the bottle two separato
stoppers, or a double stopper having two seats. An elastic packing of india rubber,
or other suitable material is used either in the stoppers, or in the seats to make the
necessary tight joint between the seats at each aperture of the bottle neck and the
stoppers. The means I use according to this Invention to keep the stoppers on
their seats is compressed air which is introduced as hereafter described in the
neck between the two stopper seats by which air tight joints at the two apertures
is effected.
The body, or stem of the stopper may be made of glass, china, lignum vitæ, or
other suitable material impervious to liquids, or air. When a double stopper is
employed I insert in the bottle neck a single stopper having two seats and elastic
packings at each end, one part of which may fit and move freely in a hollow part
formed in the other part, so that this stopper can extend lengthways in the bottle
neck and close both the neck aperture and mouth when the compressed air is applied
as above described. When I use stoppers having no elastic packing on their body,
for instance spherical shaped stoppers, known as the ball stopper, which may be of
glass, or similar hard material, 1 form an annular groove inside the neck aperture
and the mouth into which I insert a ring of suitable elastic packing, such as india
rubber, or cork, or a compound of india rubber, or cork. In this case the two round
balls are introduced into the bottle neck and are pressed into their respective elastic
seats by the compressed air as previously explained and form the necessary air tight
joint.
The process of forming ledges and grooves in the bottle mouths and also of

page_text: introducing the glass balls into the bottle neck during the process of manufacturing such
bottle is well known by glass bottle makers and therefore needs no further description,
except to say that a bottle according to my Invention requires two seats, or ledges,
or two annular grooves, so that if I wish to form these two ledges, or grooves at one
time, the part of the tool, or tongs for forming such seats, or grooves may require to
be of double formation instead of the single tool as ordinarily, and must be expanded
wider outwardly than under ordinary conditions on account of the bulbous neck
coming between the two portions which form the seats, or ledges. The machine
according to my Invention which I employ in connection with the above stoppers
and bottles is provided with a revolving bottle holder at the base of which is fitted a
plate, or holder for the bottle to rest upon and the revolving holder is actuated by
suitable means, such as a handle and spring, or cam, or equivalent mechanism. When
the bottle is filled with liquid, it is put in position in the bottle holder and by means
of the spring aforesaid has its mouth pressed in a suitable mouth piece making an air
tight joint at the top of the bottle holder, the bottle being in an upright position. In
this position one of the stoppers in the bulbous bottle neck is pressed in the seat of the
lower aperture by means of a small piston, or plunger which projects through the
mouth piece of the bottle holder and enters the bottle neck. This piston is acted upon
by a spring and lever, or cam or like mechanism. The lower aperture of the bottle
being now provisionally stopped, the bottle is turned mouth downwards by revolving
the bottle holder and the compressed air is supplied to the bottle neck by suitable
means such as an air pump, which may be attached to the machine, or the air may
be taken from a compressed air reservoir in connection with the revolving machine,
while the bottle is in this inverted position. If it is required to remove the dampness,
or moisture left in the bottle neck during the process of filling, 1 allow an excess of
air to scavange and dry up any dampness there may be in the bottle neck and then
escape through a valve provided for that purpose in the mouthpiece of the bottle holder
and before allowing the top stopper to fall in position for stoppering. The small
piston which is pressing upon the stopper as above described is withdrawn thereby
allowing the other stopper to fall into the bottle mouth.
The compressed air now exists between the two stoppers in the bottle neck, presses
and keeps them firmly on their seats, thus making air tight joints and providing
against the exposure of the liquid contained in the bottle to the compressed air.
The bottle is opened by pressing the upper stopper into the bottle mouth, the lower
stopper being at the same time released by the escape of the compressed air from
the bottle neck. When the bottle is decanted, which is done in the usual way, the
stoppers range themselves in the large part of the neck and allow the liquid to pass
.freely out.
A suitable opener to be used for pressing in the stopper may consist of a tapered
stem, covered with india rubber which will serve also as an effectual stopper for
externally closing the bottle, when its contents are not always decancted at once, or
when otherwise required.
The nature of my Invention will be more fully understood on reference to the
accompanying four sheets of Drawings, (making a part of this Specification) which are
marked with letters and figures of reference corresponding with those in the following
explanation, like letters and figures being used to denote the same, or corresponding
parts throughout the Drawings.
Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of a bottle and stopper according to my Invention
with the stopper shown in position when the bottle is charged.
Figure 2 is an outside view of the bottle shown at Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a sectional plan of the bottle taken at the line X X Figure 1.
Figure 4 is a sectional elevation of a bottle showing a modified form of bottle and
stopper according to my Invention.
Figure 5 is a. side view of the bottle shown at Figure 4.
Figure 6 is a sectional plan of the bottle taken through the line X X Figure 4.
Figure 7 is a side elevation of a machine employed for stopping bottles according

page_text: removed.
Figure 9 is an end view of the machine with the bottle holder shown in an inverted
position, namely when stoppering.
Figure 10 is a sectional elevation showing the respective positions taken by the
bottle and the machine in the operation of stopping.
Figure 11 is a sectional elevation showing the action of the machine when a ball
stopper is used.
a is the bottle which according to my Invention is provided with a bulbous neck b,
which is contracted at its base c so as to form an aperture 6¹ similar, or nearly similar
to the mouth 6 of the bottle. Inside the bottle neck and above the aperture ¹ I form
a seat d and I also form a seat e in the inside of the mouth 6. I use in connection
with the bottle, two stoppers fg such as shown at Figure 4 or such as shown at
Figure 1. I also use an elastic packing h which may be applied to the stoppers as
shown in Figure 1, or to the seats as shown at Figure 4 to make the necessary air
tight joint between the seats at each aperture of the bottle neck and the stoppers fg.
The means I use according to this Invention to keep the stoppers on their seats is
compressed air or carbonic acid or like gas. "This is applied by means of a machine'
such as illustrated in Figures 7. 8 and 9. The machine is provided with a revolving
bottle holder k having a spring bottle rest and a mouth piece k. The bottle holder
is worked by the handle 1. The top of the holder is provided with a piston m which
passes through the mouthpiece into a small cylinder n and is kept down by a
spring n¹. The piston m is provided with small grooves m¹ which serve as air ducts
from the cylinder n to the inside of the bottle neck b. The top of the piston m is
provided with a cross head o having anti-friction rollers, and underneath the bottle
holder and attached to the pillar of the machine there is a camp with which the cross-
head o engages when the bottle holder is revolved. The bottle holder is carried on a
hollow shaft mounted on the pillars of the machine. At the top of the pillar there
is an air or gas pump t worked by means of the rods t¹ and the eccentric u on the
hollow shaft r. One end of the hollow shaft r is connected by means of the pipe v
with the top of the air pump t and the other end of the shaft r is connected by means
of the pipe w with the cylinder n on the bottle holder, the pipe w being provided with
a non return valve at w
In operation when the bottle a is filled with liquid, it is put in the bottle holder k
in the manner shown at Figure 7, the piston m pressing on the double stopper fg and
forcing the stopper f onto the seat d. The bottle holder k is then revolved half a circle
(see Figure 10) and the action of revolving the holder by turning the shaft r causes
the eccentric u to raise the plunger of the pump t and force a charge of air through
the pipes and w and the grooves m¹ of the piston m into the bottle neck b. On the
completion of the semi revolution the cross head o comes under the cam p and with-
draws the piston m from the bottle neck b as shown in Figure 10 thus allowing the
stopper g to fall onto its seat e and imprison the compressed air in the bottle neck,
the pressure of such air keeping the stoppers ƒ and g firmly against their seats. The
stoppers are of telescopic formation as shown in Figure 1. When the stoppers
are of ball, or equivalent formation the piston m must be long enough to hold the
lower ball in position when turning the holder, as shown at Figure 11. To ensure
the piston m holding the stopper f, in the case of telescopic stoppers, correctly upon
its seat, the bottle neck b is provided with an internal projection i which keeps the
stoppers in position (see Figure 10) in a direct line with the bottle mouth 6 to enable
the stopper g to fall freely into position for stopping the mouth b³.
In the case of ball stoppers two projections (see Figures 4. 5. 6) are formed in
the bottle neck. These projections prevent the balls from janming and also leave less
room for the balls to knock, or strike against each other on the side of the bottle neck.
To open the bottle the device shown at z Figure 14 may be used. It consists of a
tapered stem covered with india rubber and it also serves as an effectual stopper for
externally closing the bottle when its contents are not all decanted at once.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
First. A bottle for containing still, or slightly gaseous liquids having a neck with
two seats and two internal stoppers of double, or separate form substantially as herein
described and shown at Figures 1 to 6 of the Drawings, or any mere modification
thereof.
Second. The mode herein described of bottling still, or slightly gaseous liquids in
bottles having two internal stoppers which mode consists of first filling the bottle
with the liquid, then pressing one of the said stoppers onto its seat as described and
then inverting the bottle and introducing compressed air or gas into the neck of the
bottle and then allowing the second of the said stoppers to fall onto its seat, the com-
pressed air introduced being the means of keeping the stoppers on their seats,
substantially as set forth.
Third. In apparatus employed for bottling still, or slightly gaseous liquids in bottles
of the type herein above described and claimed, a plunger, or piston such as m
operating as and for the purposes set forth.
Fourth. In apparatus employed for bottling still, or slightly gaseous liquids in
bottles of the type hereinabove described and claimed, a pump t, a revolving holder k
and a plunger, or piston m all arranged and operating as, or substantially as set forth.
Fifth. The machine substantially as herein described for stopping bottles containing
still, or slightly gaseous liquids, which machine consists of a revolving bottle holder k,
hollow shaft, pillar 8, air pump t, rods t' t³, eccentric u, pipes vw, bottle rest k¹,
mouth piece, piston m, crosshead o, cam p and handle 1, all arranged and operating
as herein described and as illustrated in Figures 7. 8. 9. 10 and 11 of the accom-
panying Drawings.