Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 31st May, 1887
Complete Left, 28th Feb., 1888
Complete Accepted, 29th Mar., 1888
We, DAVID COWAN, of Mount Gerald, Larbert, in the County of Stirling, North
Britain, Civil Engineer, Manager for Carron Company, incorporated by Royal
Charter, and ALEXANDER ROBERTSON, of 6 Dawson Terrace, Carron, in the same
County, Toolmaker, do hereby declare the nature of this Invention to be as follows,
that is to say :-
This Invention has for its object the constructing in an improved, simple, firm, and
convenient manner of swivelling chairs suitable for ships' saloons, and for any other
places in which it may be desired to have chairs with the lower part fixed and the seat
and back movable for the purpose of giving convenient ingress and egress between
the chairs of a row.
In carrying out the Invention what may be termed the working parts are preferably
made of metal, but they may also be made of wood or of any suitable combination of
materials. When the working parts are of metal, the seat and back of the chair are
fixed upon an upper plate which rests and moves upon an under plate which latter is
fixed to the legs or stationary part of the chair. The two plates are connected by
what may be termed an elliptic device which may be arranged in a great variety of
ways. In one simple modification two pins fixed in the upper plate, one in its centre
and the other at a short distance therefrom project down, like the pins of a trammel
for delineating ellipses, into two grooves or slots formed at right angles or other
suitable angles to each other in the under plate. With this construction when the
seat with the chair back is turned to either side from its normal position its centre
also moves to one side, so that if the seats of two adjacent chairs are turned in
opposite directions a comparatively wide space will be formed between them for
ingress and egress. The seats can also be turned half round so as for example to
place the backs against a table or in the opposite position. In a second modification a
DO17

page_text: disk or ring is substituted for one of the pins and works in a sufficiently broad bu
shallow groove made for it in the under plate whilst the other pin is fixed in the disk
or ring and projects into a transverse groove formed. in the bottom of the broad
groove. In a third modification the upper plate is made with a diametrical groove to
slide upon a bar made with a pin at its middle to turn in a hole at the centre of the
under plate whilst a disk or ring on the under plate projects up into a shallow groove
formed in the under side of the upper plate at right angles to the groove for
the bar. The construction may be further modified by inverting or transposing the
parts, or by substituting known equivalent devices yielding the same motion.
Doted this Thirtieth day of May 1887.
EDMUND HUNT,
Applicants' Agent.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Swivelling Chairs.
We, DAVID COWAN, of Mount Gerald, Larbert, in the County of Stirling, North
Britain, Civil Engineer, Manager for Carron Company, incorporated by Royal
Charter, and ALEXANDER ROBERTSON, of 6 Dawson Terrace, Carron, in the same
County, Toolmaker, 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, that is to say :-
This Invention has for its object the constructing in an improved, simple, firm, and
convenient manner, of swivelling chairs, suitable for-ships' saloons, and for any other
places in which it may be desired to have chairs with the lower part fixed and the seat
and back movable for the purpose of giving convenient ingress and egress between the
chairs of a row.
In carrying out the Invention what may be termed the working parts are preferably
made of metal, but they may also be made of wood or of any suitable combination of
materials. When the working parts are of metal the seat and back of the chair are
fixed upon an upper plate which rests and moves upon an under plate, which latter is
fixed to the legs or stationary part of the chair. The two plates are connected by
what may be termed an elliptic device which may be arranged in various ways, but
examples of what we believe to be the most convenient arrangements are shown on an
accompanying sheet of explanatory drawings.
Figure, 1, of the drawings is a vertical section of one modification and figure, 2, is
an inverted plan of the working parts. Figure, 3, is a plan, figure, 4, a vertical
section, and figure, 5, an inverted plan of the working parts of a second modification.
Figure, 6, is an elevation, and figure, 7, an inverted plan of the upper portion of the
working parts of a third modification, figure, 8, being a vertical section of the working
parts, and figure, 9, an inverted plan. In these drawings the same reference numerals.
are used to mark the same or like parts wherever they are repeated.
In the modification shown in figures, 1, and 2, two pins, 10, 11, are fixed in the
upper plate, 12, of the working parts, which plate has fixed on it the seat, 13, and
back, 14, of the chair. One, 10, of the pins is fixed in the centre of the upper
plate, 12, the other, 11, being fixed at a short distance from the centre; and the two
pins project down, like the pins of a trammel for delineating ellipses, into two grooves
or slots, 15, 16, formed at right angles (or it might be at other suitable angles) to
each other, in the under plate, 17, which is fixed on the legs or stationary part, 18, of
the chair. With this construction, when the seat, 13, with the chair back, 14, is turned
to either side from its normal position, its centre with the centre pin, 10, also moves
to one side, so that if the seats of two adjacent chairs are turned in opposite directions
a comparatively wide space will be formed between them for ingress and egress. The
seats can also be turned half round so as, for example, to place the back, 14, against a
table or in the opposite position.

page_text: In the second modification shown in figures, 3, 4, and 5, a disk or ring, 19, is
substituted for one (11) of the pins, and works in a sufficiently broad but shallow
groove, 16, made for it in the under plate, 17, and indicated by dotted lines in
figures, 3, and 5, whilst the other pin, 10, which is fixed in the disk or ring, 19, as well
as in the top plate, 12, projects down into a transverse groove, 15, formed in the
bottom of the broad groove, 16.
In the third modification shown in figures, 6, to 9, the upper plate, 12, is made
with a diametrical groove, 20, to slide upon a bar, 21, made with a pin, 22, at its
middle to turn in a hole at the centre of the under plate, 17, whilst a ring or disk, 23,
on the under plate projects up into a shallow groove, 24, formed on the under side of
the upper plate, 12, at right angles to the groove, 20, for the bar, 21.
The construction may be further modified by inverting or transposing the parts or
by substituting known equivalent devices yielding the same motion.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is :-
Constructing swivelling seats with working parts forming an elliptic device and
operating substantially as hereinbefore described.
Dated this Twenty-seventh day of February 1888.