Improved Appliance for Attachment to Doors, Windows, Screens, Flaps, Wings, and like Hinged or Hung Constructions, for the Purpose of Temporarily Holding the same in any Desired Position.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 10th Oct., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 10th Aug., 1893-Accepted, 16th Sept., 1893
TRUVIDIONAL LEUITIVATION.
Improved Appliance for Attachment to Doors, Windows, Screens,
Flaps, Wings, and like Hinged or Hung Constructions, for the
Purpose of Temporarily Holding the same in any Desired
Position.
I WILLIAM BONDFIELD WESTLAKE of 19 Northampton Place, Swansea, in
the County of Glamorgan, Contractor, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
The object of my invention is to provide a simple appliance that may be readily
fixed upon or removed from doors, windows, flaps of screens, scenery, or other hinged
or otherwise vertically bung constructions for the purpose of temporarily securing the
same in any desired position, thus in the case of a door fitted with my appliance it
may be set "ajar" or partly open and retained in that position until released by
hand, without injury to carpet, floor cloth, or boards, and for this purpose I employ
a vertical rod or its equivalent working in suitable guides, sockets, or like devices,
and having mounted on its lower extremity a disc, capsule, or block of indiarubber
or a pad of compressible material.
The vertical rod carrying the capsule, pad or equivalent may be raised or
depressed at will by any well known mechanical means so arranged as to be readily
fitted on to the door or the like, and the appliance may consist of a simple rod bent
at its upper extremity to form a handle or having a knob or other similar device
attached thereto and capable of being pulled up or pushed down by hand, or a
connecting rod or lever attached to the upper end of the vertical rod may be
operated by a cam on the door handle.
The guides and fulcrum pins (where such are used) may be fitted to a separate
plate which can be readily screwed or otherwise secured on to the door or may be
attached to or form part of the usual finger plate or plates. In some cases I may
employ a spring controlled device such as a lug on the back of the rod taking into
a slot or the like cut in the plate, such device being covered by a box fixed on a
separate plate or on the finger plate and operated by a knob or button; or I may
raise or lower the vertical rod by means of a curved compound lever one part of
which is slotted to allow of the other part (which forms the upper part of the
vertical rod) to work through, the rod and its rubber or other termination being
kept normally down by means of a bent spring.
Instead of using a vertical rod to carry the rubber capsule or other device, I
may employ a balance or other two armed lever on one end of which may be
mounted the rubber block or its equivalent whilst on the other is a bulb or knob
the lever being kept normally in or out of position for holding the door by means
of a strong spring and released by pressing the knob or bulb (or vice versa) the
whole being covered by a bent metal plate of suitable form to the inside of which
may be attached one end of the spring the other being secured to the knob or bent
end of the lever; thus when the knob is raised the spring may cause the lever to
tip up and press the capsule against the floor, or the reverse action may be
employed.
Dated this 28th day of September 1892.
POPPLEWELL & Co.,
17 & 18, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improved Appliance for Attachment to Doors, Windows, Screens,
Flaps, Wings, and like Hinged or Hung Constructions, for the
Purpose of Temporarily Holding the same in any Desired
Position.
I WILLIAM BONDFIELD WESTLAKE of 19 Northampton Place Swansea in the
County of Glamorgan, Contractor 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 :-
The object of my invention is to provide a simple appliance that may be readily
fixed upon or removed from doors, windows, flaps of screens, scenery, or other
hinged or otherwise vertically hung constructions. for the purpose of temporarily.
securing the same in any desired position, thus in the case of a door fitted with my
appliance it may be set ajar or partly open and retained in that position until
released by hand, without injury to carpet, floorcloth, or boards, and for this
purpose I employ a vertical rod or its equivalent working in suitable guides,
sockets, or like devices, and having mounted on its lower extremity a disc, capsule,
or block of indiarubber or a pad of compressible material.
The vertical rod carrying the capsule, pad, or equivalent may be raised or
depressed at will by any well known mechanical means so arranged as to be readily
fitted on to the door or the like and the appliance may consist of a simple rod bent
at its upper extremity to form a handle or having a knob or other similar device
attached thereto and capable of being pulled up or pushed down by hand, or a
connecting rod or lever attached to the upper end of the vertical rod may be
operated by a cam on the door handle.
The guides and fulcrum pins (where such are used) may be fitted to a separate
plate which can be readily screwed or otherwise secured on to the door or may be
attached to or form part of the usual finger plate or plates. In some cases I may
employ a spring-controlled device such as a lug on the back of the rod taking into
a slot or the like cut in the plate, such device being covered by a box fixed on a
separate part or on the finger plate, and operated by a knob or button, or 1 may
raise or lower the vertical rod by means of a curved compound lever one part of
which is slotted to allow of the other part (which forms the upper part of the
vertical rod) to work through, the rod and its rubber termination being kept
normally down by means of a bent spring.
Iustead of using a vertical rod to carry the rubber capsule or other device I
may employ a balance or other two armed lever on one end of which may be
mounted the rubber block or its equivalent whilst on the other is a bulb or knob
the lever being kept normally in or out of position for holding the door by means
of a strong spring and released by pressing the knob or bulb or vice versa the whole
being covered by a bent metal plate of suitable form to the inside of which may be
attached one end of the spring the other end being secured to the knob or bent
end of the lever, thus when the knob is raised the spring may cause the lever to tip
up and press the capsule against the floor or the reverse action may be employed.
In order to more fully demonstrate the working of my invention I have caused
to be attached to this Specification a sheet of drawings showing the operation of
several methods that may be employed in carrying it into effect but I would have
it understood that I do not confine myself to any or all of these, as inany modifi-
cations of the means shown may be adopted without departing from the spirit of
my said invention.
On this sheet of drawings
Figures 1 and 2 show a means whereby the vertical rod F carrying at its lower
extremity the capsule or pad G and retained in upright position by guides J J
affixed to the door or to the door and plate H is raised or lowered by means of a

page_text: handle on the end of a spindle passing through or into the plate H at the point E.
On this spindle is carried an angular plate E¹ to the lower part of which is attached
the slotted or bent arm B jointed at D to the bent upper part C of the vertical rod F
the whole forming the before described compound lever the upper arm of which B
is slotted or forked to allow the lower arm C to pass through.
A flat spring A is held normally close to any side of the angular plate E' that
may be turned towards it and so keeps it in position after a turn of the handle.
Figure 1 shows the position of the lever when the pad G rests on the floor,
Figure 2 shows the device raised. The plate H is secured to the door by screws or
the like and may be one of the usual finger plates.
Figures 3 and 4 show a means by which a cam or lever E attached to a spindle
or handle D raises (or depresses) the vertical rod C and pad G (by means of the
loop C¹) the same being held normally from or to the floor by a spring A in tension
or compression as required. B is the door plate carrying the device.
Figure 5 shows a vertical rod C held normally down by a tension spring A and
passing loosely through a casing or box B in the side of which is a notch (or
recess) H into which a projection on the vertical rod C takes when the pad G is to
be raised from the floor, the top of the rod or handle D being pulled slightly
forward to release it.
Figures 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 illustrate another arrangement by means of which
the apparatus is attached to or contained in a plate or casing secured to the bottom
rail or portion of a door or the like and in this modification I pivot a lever or rod C
centrally or nearly so, say at H to the plate or casing A.
Above the lever and parallel thereto (or nearly so) as shown in Figure 6, or
directly over or under the lever as shown in Figures 10 and 11, I secure a rod
(or rods) and spring D one end of which is attached to the lever at F and the other
end to the plate or casing at E. At one extremity of the lever C I fix the capsule
or pad G and at the opposite extremity I form or attach a projecting piece or
trigger I. If I use a casing this is slotted as shown by B the trigger I projecting
through the slot and capable of being operated by hand or foot. The action of
this device is as follows: when the capsule or pad is away from the floor the
lever C and spring D lie parallel as shown by Figure 6 the spring being in tension.
On the trigger I being pushed upwards (or released from a catch if desired) the
spring D will retain it in the position shown by Figure 7 until pushed down
again.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed declare that what I
claim is
1. A means for and method of retaining a door, window or like device in an open
or partially open position without damage to floor or floor covering, consisting of a
vertical, horizontal or diagonal rod or bar on one end of which is an india rubber
or other pad or capsule and at the opposite end a handle or the like for operating
the same, the rod being secured to the door by guides or being pivotted thereon or
on a plate attached thereto substantially as described.
2. For securing or retaining doors, windows and the like in an open or partially
open position the use of a vertical rod such as For C carrying at its lower
extremity a pad or capsule such as G held normally either up or down by a spring
device and actuated by means of the usual handle or by a special handle substantially
as hereinbefore described and as illustrated by Figures 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 on the
accompanying sheet of drawings or any mere modification of the foregoing.
3. For securing or retaining doors, windows or the like in an open or partially
open position, the use of a device consisting of a plate or casing such as A having a
slot or equivalent B to or in which plate or casing is pivotted a bar, rod or lever
such as to one end of which is attached a pad or capsule such as G and to the
other a trigger or boss such as I working in slot B, the whole controlled by a
spring such as D, substantially as hereinbefore described and as illustrated by

page_text: Figures 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 on the accompanying sheet of drawings or any mere
modification of the foregoing.
Dated this 29th dex of March 1893
POPPLEWELL & Co.,
17 & 18, Southampton Buildings, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.