IMPROVEMENTS IN LAMPS
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Sydney Pitt, of Sutton, in the County of Surrey, for
an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN LAMPS." A communication from abroad
by William Burnet Robins, of Cincinnati, Hamilton, County of Ohio, United
States of America.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Sydney Pitt at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 23rd November 1880.
SYDNEY PITT, of Sutton, in the County of Surrey.
[A communication from abroad by William
Cincinnati, Hamilton, County of Ohio, United States of America.]
LAMPS."
"IMPROVEMENTS IN
Robins, of
Burnet
The object of this Invention is to construct a lamp adapted to produce a long,
narrow, very even line of flame of high luminosity, and exceptional freedom from
smoke as well as from unsteadiness and flickering. These objects are accomplished
without the use or requirement of a chimney.
The improved lamp consists mainly of a long and narrow vessel constituting the
font. From the bottom of said font, immediately in rear of its front wall, rises a
long flat wick tube or holder. Enclosing this wick holder on its front and rear sides
respectively are sheath plates or wick guards capable of accurate vertical adjustment.
A plate extending upward from the rear of the font is perforated to receive bolts
or hooks projecting from the wall of the apartment to be lighted. A nickel plated
or other polished facing on the upper portion of the said wall plate makes it
serviceable as a reflector.
The wick holder
The font is preferably a long and narrow rectangular box.
consists of two rigid plates, preferably of cast metal having small end flanges, so that
when brought together said plates enclose between them a wick space. Said wick
holder is secured permanently in the font, preferably flush or nearly flush with the
front wall of the latter, so as to rest by its lower edge on the font floor and to
Orifices give free access to the
extend upward through the top of the font.
contents of the font to the wick. The location of the wick holding tube at the
extreme front of the font secures entire benefit of the light unobstructed by the
shadow of the font and hides the feed neck from view.
The rear wall of the font extends upward and is perforated to enable its engage-
ment over hooks or other projections from the wall of the apartment or from the

page_text: bench rail of a workshop. A nickel plated or other reflector or mirror may be
applied to that portion of the wall plate which extends from the level of the wick
holder to the top of said plate.
Spring clips attached to the font serve to hold snugly against the wick holder
the sheath plates. These sheath plates are so formed and applied as to hug the
vertical walls or faces of the wick holder on every side, and are inclined inward at
top so as to restrict the distance apart of their top edges to that which separates the
inner faces of the wick holder. Screw threaded eyes or nuts upon the sheath plates,
one on each plate, receive screws by which either sheath plate may be independently
adjusted up or down. The rear screw passes upwards through a fixed tube carried
through the font.
The wick consists preferably of two parts or sections, of which one section called
the feeding wick occupies the lower portion of the wick holder, and the other section
called the burning wick rests upon it and extends upward through the top of the
wick holder. Of these sections the lower section may be composed of the customary
woven or plaited material. The upper section preferably consists of a strip of
bibulous paper (blotting paper), whose entire vertical surfaces have been stiffened
and at the same time rendered impervious to the inflammable vapour by a coating
or varnish of such oil-proof and fire-proof and moderately friable substance as a
mixture of dextrine and powdered steatite; but inasmuch as it is purposed making
such wick the subject of a distinct application for Patent, I do not deem it
necessary to more specifically describe it in this Specification.
While preferring separately adjusting sheaths for the front and rear faces of the
wick respectively, a valuable modification of the Invention may be constructed
whose sheath consists of a continuous flat tube surrounding the wick holder and
adjusted by a single screw or its equivalent. Still another modification may
consist in making one of the sheath plates, for example the front plate, immoveable,
the opposing plate only, being adjustable.
Although devised chiefly for a wall and bench lamp, and for that purpose pro-
vided with a wall plate at the extreme rear, and the wick holder located at the
extreme front of the font, it is manifest that the improved wick holder and sheath
tubes or plates may be usefully employed in portable lamps. For such lamps the
wall plate is of course omitted, and for greater stability the wick holder may he
located midway between the front and rear of the font, and the latter be formed
with a broader base. Rods operated by levers may be used in place of the adjusting
screws. When adjusting screws are employed with the portable form of the lamp,
the latter will be upheld by suitable feet or by a perforated or scolloped marginal
flange, and both screws may occupy sleeves in the font.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Sydney Pitt in the Great Seal Patent Office on
May 1881.
the 23rd
"IMPROVEMENTS
IN
Burnet Robins, of
SYDNEY PITT, of Sutton, in the County of Surrey.
LAMPS." (A communication from abroad by William
Cincinnati, Hamilton, County of Ohio, United States of America.)
The object of this Invention is to construct a lamp adapted to produce a long,
narrow, very even line of flame of high luminosity, and exceptional freedom from
smoke as well as from unsteadiness and flickering and from shadow. These objects
are accomplished without the use or requirement of a chimney.
The improved lamp consists mainly of a long and narrow vessel constituting the
font. From the bottom of said font, flush with or immediately in rear of its front
wall, rises a long flat wick tube or holder. Enclosing this wick-holder on its front
and rear sides respectively are sheath plates or wick-guards capable of accurate
vertical adjustment for nice and varied regulation of the flame. A plate extending
upward from the
rear of the font is perforated to receive bolts or hooks
projecting from the wall of the apartment to be lighted. A nickel-plated or other
polished facing on the upper portion of the said wall plate makes it serviceable as a
reflector.
In the accompanying Drawings Figure 1 is a perspective view of a lamp
embodying the Invention, both the wick-sheaths being shewn adjusted to the same
height. Figure 2 is a vertical section in the plane of the adjusting screws, one only
of the wick-sheaths being shewn elevated.
The font A is preferably a long and narrow rectangular box, as represented.
The wick-holder consists of two rigid plates B, B1, preferably of cast metal, having
small end-flanges b, so that when brought together said plates enclose between them
a wick-space b¹. Said wick-holder is secured permanently in the font, preferably
flush or nearly flush with the front wall of the latter, so as to rest by its lower edge
on the font floor and to extend upward through the top of the font in the manner
shewn. Orifices 611 enables free access of the contents of the font to the wick.
The location of the wick-holding tube at the extreme front of the font secures entire
benefit of the light unobstructed by the shadow of the font, and hides the feed-neck
from view.
The rear wall C of the font extends upward, and is perforated c to enable its
engagement over hooks or other projections from the wall of the apartment or from
the bench-rail of a workshop. A nickel-plated or other reflector or mirror D may
be applied to that portion of the wall plate which extends from the level of the
wick-holder to the top of said plate.
E may represent a customary screw-capped feed hole or neck. Spring clips F
attached to the font serve to hold snugly against the wick-holder B, B1, the sheath
plates G, G. These sheath plates are so formed and applied as to hug the vertical
walls or faces of the wick-holder on every side, and are inclined inward at top, as
at g, so as to restrict the distance apart of their top edges to that which separates
the inner faces of the wick-holder. Screw-threaded eyes or nuts H, H¹, upon the
sheath-plates, one on each plate, receive screws I, I, by which either sheath-plate
may be independently adjusted up or down. The rear screw I¹ occupies a stationary
sleeve L within the font.
The wick consists preferably of two parts or sections, of which one section J,
called the feeding wick, occupies the lower portion of the wick-holder, and the
other section K, called the burning wick, rests upon section J, and extends upward
through the top of the wick-holder in the manner shewn. Of these sections the

page_text: lower section J may be composed of the customary woven or plaited material.
The upper section K preferably consists of a strip of bibulous paper (blotting
paper), whose entire vertical surfaces have been stiffened and at the same time
rendered impervious to the inflammable vapour by a coating or varnish of such
oil-proof and fire-proof and moderately friable substance as a mixture of dextrine
and powdered steatite, but inasmuch as it is proposed making such wick the
subject of a distinct application for Patent I do not deem it necessary to more
specifically describe it in this Specification.
The above described preferred form of lamp may be modified by making one of
the sheath plates, for example plate G, immoveable, the opposing plate G¹ only
being. adjustable.
Although devised chiefly for a wall and bench lamp, and for that purpose
provided with a wall plate at the extreme rear, and the wick-holder located at the
extreme front of the font, it is manifest that the improved wick-holder and
sheath tube or plates may be usefully employed in portable lamps. For such lamps
the wall plate is of course omitted, and for greater stability the wick-holder may
be located midway between the front and rear of the font and the latter be formed
with a broader base. Rods operated by levers may be used in place of the
adjusting screws I, I¹. When adjusting screws I, I', are employed with the
portable form of the lamp the latter will be upheld by suitable feet, or by a
perforated or scolloped marginal flange, and both screws may occupy sleeves in the
font.
I claim,
First. In a stationary-wick chimneyless lamp, the flat wick-holding tube B, B',
in combination with the separate sheath plates G, G₁, of which one or both are
adjustable, substantially as set forth.
Second. In a stationary-wick chimneyless lamp, the flat wick-holding tube B, B¹,
in combination with an adjustable flat sheathing tube in two or more pieces,
substantially as set forth.
Third. In a stationary-wick chimneyless lamp, the combination of long and
narrow font A, rear wall plate C, front wick-holder B, B₁, adjustable sheath
plates G, G', clips F, and adjusting screws I, I, substantially as set forth.
Fourth. In combination with a stationary flat wick lamp, with separately
adjustable sheath plates G, G', the adjusting screws I, I', of which one screw I is
is located in front of the font and the other screw I¹ occupies a sleeve L within the
font, substantially as set forth.
Fifth. In a stationary-wick chimneyless lamp, a long and narrow font A, having
a flat wick-holder B, B1, at the front part of the font and flush or nearly flush with
its front wall, substantially as set forth.
Sixth. A stationary flat-wick lamp, having the wall plate C flush with the rear
wall of its font and the wick-holder flush with the front wall thereof, substantially
as set forth.
Seventh. In the described combination with font A, having front wick-holder and
guard B, B1, G, G', the rear wall plate C having the reflector D, substantially as
set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Sydney Pitt, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Sixteenth day of May, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and eighty one.
SYDNEY PITT. (L.S.)