IMPROVEMENTS IN FASTENINGS FOR DOORS, WINDOWS, DRAWERS, AND OTHER LIKE PURPOSES
Year: 1865

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by George Edward Meek and William
Howes Howes at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their
Petition, on the 9th February 1865.
We, GEORGE EDWARD MEEK, of Crane Court, Fleet Street, in the City of
London, Stationer, and WILLIAM HOWES HOWES, of Curtain Road, Shoreditch,
in the County of Middlesex, Looking Glass Maker, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN FASTENINGS FOR DOORS,
WINDOWS, DRAWERS, AND OTHER LIKE PURPOSES," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to certain peculiar constructions and arrangements
of spring bolts and sockets for the same, latches and locks for securing doors,
window sashes, and drawers, and applicable generally to cabinet furniture, in
which doors or drawers are required.
According to one part of this Invention it is proposed to make the socket
for receiving the end of a bolt when applied to the bottom of a door, and made
to shoot downwards into such socket, which is to be let into the floor, so that
no accumulation of dirt may take place in the socket; for this purpose a
sliding metal plug is fitted inside the socket, which should be of a tubular
form, such plug being forced upwards by a helical spring inside the socket,
and maintained flush with the top of such socket, so as to close the hole when
the bolt is withdrawn, and thereby prevent the entrance of dirt therein. Any
ordinary bolt may be used with this socket; or a spring bolt may be employed
of a peculiar construction. This spring bolt is contained within a tubular
socket, and is forced outwards by means a helical spring within the tubular

page_text: socket; the bolt is drawn back by means of a small handle, the shank of
which passes through a slot in the side of the tubular socket. In order to
hold the bolt back when withdrawn a bayonet slot is employed, and a slight
return slot or notch is made in such bayonet slot to retain the shank of the
knob or handle when brought therein by a slight turn of the bolt. This
improved socket and spring bolt may be applied, if desired, to the side of a
door or to a sash frame; or the spring bolt and socket may be used as a
substitute for the ordinary safety chains of doors by placing the spring socket
some little distance back from the door, and fitting an antifriction roller to
the bottom of the spring bolt, so that when the bolt is released and the door
opened the roller in the bolt will run along the floor and drop into the spring
socket, thus preventing the closing again or further opening of the door till
the spring bolt has been raised. We also propose to make spring latches for
outer and other doors by introducing a hollow sliding latch bolt inside a
tubular socket, such latch bolt being bevelled at the outer end so as to sneck
into the catch plate, whilst its inner end is pressed against by a helical spring
contained inside the tubular socket. The latch bolt may be withdrawn by a
knob or handle inside the house, and may be opened from the outside by a
latch key adapted to any convenient or well-known tumbler or other lock,
placed inside the hollow latch bolt. :
Another part of our Invention relates to an improved form of lock intended
to be used as a substitute for the more cumbrous mortice locks, and consists
in fitting the latch bolt so as to slide freely in a tubular socket, which is to
be let into the door. The latch bolt is withdrawn or moved back in the
ordinary manner by means of a spindle and levers or tappets, and is forced
outwards by a helical spring inside the tubular socket. If desired a key may
be also applied to these locks or latches with a view to preventing the latch
bolt from being withdrawn when the key is partly turned round, thereby fixing
the latch bolt. This key may be made to act on a sliding catch or bolt inside
the hollow latch bolt, such sliding catch or bolt being forced against the levers
or tappets, and so preventing them from moving and drawing back the latch
bolt, or if desired the key may be made to shoot the latch bolt further out
from its socket or case. If desired india-rubber springs may be substituted
for the helical metal springs in these various fastenings.