AN IMPROVED FIRE ESCAPE
Year: 1866

page_text: Sealed the 18th September 1866, and dated the 20th March 1866.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Ralph Augustine Jones
and John Cooper Hedges at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 20th March 1866.
We, RALPH AUGUSTINE JONES and JOHN COOPER HEDGES, both of Aylesbury,
in the County of Buckingham, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "AN IMPROVED FIRE ESCAPE." to be as follows:-
Our Invention consists of a Y-shaped framework composed of steel, brass,
iron, or any other suitable metal or material, the lower portion of which is
formed so as to present a comfortable hold or handle. In the upper portion.
and mounted on a suitable spindle, we have a, drum, on which is coiled a cord
or rope of wire or hemp of length sufficient to reach from the top story or parapet
of the house or building in which it is to be used to the roadway or ground.
To the same spindle is attached a box containing a coiled spring, the said box
being supplied with a spring brake, which is brought within the reach and
control of the hand that grasps the handle. The loose end of the cord or rope
is furnished with a hook, whereby it can be attached to any place or object,
Price 8.1

page_text: and as soon as the weight comes on the handle the rope uncoils, being guided
and controlled by the spring and brake, so that any person can lower himself
to any point or at any speed desired.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Ralph Augustine Jones and John Cooper Hedges in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 20th September 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, RALPH
AUGUSTINE JONES and JOHN COOPER HEDGES, both of Aylesbury, in the County
of Buckingham, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria. by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twentieth day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the twenty-ninth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said Ralph Augustine Jones and John Cooper Hedges, Her special
licence that we, the said Ralph Augustine Jones and John Cooper Hedges,
our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said
Ralph Augustine Jones and John Cooper Hedges, our executors, administrators,
and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time
and at all times therealter during the term therein expressed, should and
lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an
Invention for "A. IMPROVED FIRE ESCAPE," upon the condition (amongst
others) that we, the said Ralph Augustine Jones and John Cooper Hedges,
our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our, or
their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and
ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent
Ollice within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of
the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Ralph Augustine Jones and John
Cooper Hedges, do hereby aeclare the nature of our said Invention, and
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
Our Invention consists of a Y-shaped framework composed of steel, brass,
iron, or any other suitable metal or material, the lower portion of which is
formed so as to present a comfortable hold or handle. In the upper portion,

page_text: and mounted on a suitable spindle, we have a drum, on which is coiled a cord
or rope of wire or hemp of length sufficient to reach from the top story or
parapet of the house or building in which it is to be used to the roadway or
ground. To the same spindle is attached a box containing a coiled spring, the
said box being supplied with a spring brake, which is brought within the reach
and control of the hand that grasps the handle. The loose end of the cord or
rope is furnished with a hook, whereby it can be attached to any place or
object, and as soon as the weight comes on the handle the rope uncoils, being
guided and controled by the spring and brake, so that any person can lower
himself to any point or at any speed desired.
We shall now proceed to particularly describe this our Invention by means
of the Drawings hereunto annexed, and endeavour to ascertain by and in what
way and manner we carry the same into practical effect, it being premised
that, notwithstanding we have shown two methods of carrying the same into
elfect, there are innumerable ways wherein the mechanical details can be
varied without departing from the essential features of our Invention. In the
Drawings accompanying this Specification like letters denote similar parts.
Figs. 1 and 4 show elevations of the whole apparatus, and Figs. 2 and 5
sections of the mechanical arrangements constructed according to two ways in
which we purpose carrying out our Invention.
Is a strong bar or rame which has the parts B, B', attached to it for
clamping it to the wall or parapet. By means of set screws, as shown, they
are secured in their required positions, B' being made to slide along A so as
on any wall, and B being provided with a socket for the reception of the
part C. The lower ends of B and B are forked in order to obtain a greater
amount of bearing surface against the wall or parapet.
in the arrangement shown in Fig. 1 the arm C, which is for convenience
bent upwards, as shown, is terminated by a hook, to which is hung the
apparatus D, which descends with the person using it. In Fig. 4 the apparatus
is attached to and forms part of the arm C, it being intended to remain at the
top while the persons descends with the cord or wire rope E. In the first
instance the operator sits or stands in the strap F, and fastens the cord or
strap Ground his waist, and grasps the brake handles H, H, with both hands,
which checks the descent by the brake K acting on a friction rim. The
apparatus revolves on the spindle 1. The brake handles H, H. work on the
pins L, L. Fig. 3 being an enlarged view of this part, showing the pins
furnished with small pulleys for the passage of the rope. The spindle I is
made square where it passes through the pulley M on which the rope E is
coiled and the friction wheel, but is made round while passing through the
.

page_text: spring box N. The coil spring in the spring box N. one end of which, is
secured to the spindle and the other to the side of the case of brass or other
metal, containing the apparatus, is caused to coil up as the person descends.
and on being set free its elasticity coils the rope up by turning the spindle and
causes the whole apparatus to ascend so as to be used if required by another
person.
In Figs. 4 and the general features are exactly the same. but the
apparatus remains above. the person descending with the rope only. The
brake is applied by any person at the top by the lever 0. When this is
the case the coil spring may be dispensed with, and the rope recoiled on the
barrel by a crank handle, which is not shown in the Drawings. The last
person that descends actuates the brake by means of the cord P attached to the
other end of the lever O. The coil spring may however be used in this case
as in Figs. I and 2.
We have now fully described our Invention, and the manner in which we
purpose carrying out the same, but we would remark that there are many
little points of detail which experience and practice only can show which
require alteration and adjustment to enable the apparatus to work steadily and
effectually. What we claim as our Invention to be protected by Her Majesty's
Letters Patent is, the general arrangement and mechanical features herein
described and illustrated for the purposes herein-before mentioned.
In witness whereof, we, the said Ralph Augustine Jones and John Cooper
Hedges, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Nineteenth day of
September, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
sixty-six.
Witness,
CHARLES S. BAKER,
General Patent Co., Limited,
71, Fleet Street,
Agents.
RALPH AUGUSTINE JONES. (L.S.)
JOHN COOPER HEDGES.
(L.S.)