Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 27th Sept., 1886.
Complete Left, 1st June, 1887.
Complete Accepted, 1st July, 1887.
I EDMUND TONKS of the firm of William Tonks and Sons of Moseley Street
Birmingham in the County of Warwick Manufacturers do hereby declare the nature
of this Invention to be as follows :-
The fastenings of the double doors of wardrobes and other double doors ordinarily
consist of two flush bolts let into the edge of one door and an ordinary lock or latch
attached to the other door near its edge. The door having the flush bolts is first
closed and the flush bolts shot into their respective staples in the door frame. The
other door is then closed and its bolt or spring catch shot or snapped into a staple in
the edge of the previously closed door.
In constructing fastenings for the double doors of wardrobes and other double doors
according to my invention, I affix to the bottom or top of the vertical edge of one of the
doors a spring arm the said arm in its normal position projecting in an inclined
position from the edge of the door. The free end of the said arm is hooked and on
the frame of the door a pin fixed with which when the door is closed and the spring
arm pressed flush to the edge of the door the said hook engages and fixes the door in
its closed position. When the door carrying the said arm is closed and the other
door is afterwards closed the edge of the latter door pressing upon the inclined spring
arm forces it inwards and thereby causes it to hook upon the pin fixed in the door
frame. The shutting of the second door thus fixes the previously closed door. I
prefer to fix the spring arm on the bottom of the edge of the door and the more firmly to
secure the upper part of the door in its closed position I let into the edge of the door
near its top a spring bolt with a rounded end. When the door is closed the rounded
end of the bolt snaps into a recess in top of the door frame and temporarily fixes the
top of the door. In order to prevent the withdrawal of the end of the bolt from its

page_text: recess when the other door is closed I employ a spring slide working horizontally
which slide when pushed inwards locks the said bolt. The protruding end of this slide
is inclined so that when the second door is shut it presses inwards the said slide and
effects the locking of the spring bolt. When the second door is opened the spring
bolt on the other door is unlocked and by gentle pressure the door can be opened the
rounded end of the bolt passing out of the recess in the door frame.
The positions of the two fastenings may be reversed and they may either be used
combined or separately.
The application of my improvements to doors other than wardrobe doors differs
in no essential respect from their application to wardrobe doors as hereinbefore
described.
Dated this Twenty seventh day of September 1886.
W. T. WHITEMAN,
Agent for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Fastenings for the Double Doors of Wardrobes
and other Double Doors.
I EDMUND TONKS of the firm of William Tonks and Sons of Moseley Street
Birmingham in the County of Warwick Manufacturers, do hereby declare the nature
of my invention and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
The fastenings of the double doors of wardrobes and other double doors ordinarily
consist of two flush bolts let into the edge of one door and an ordinary lock or latch
attached to the other door near its edge. The door having the flush bolts is first
closed and the flush bolts shot into their respective staples in the door frame. The
other door is then closed and its bolt or spring catch shot or snapped into a staple in
the edge of the previously closed door.
In constructing fastenings for the double doors of wardrobes and other double doors
according to my invention 1 affix to the bottom or top of the vertical edge of one
of the doors a spring arm the said arm in its normal position projecting in an inclined
position from the edge of the door. The free end of the said arm is hooked and
on the frame of the door a pin is fixed with which, when the door is closed and the
spring arm pressed flush to the edge of the door, the said hook engages and fixes the
door in its closed position. When the door carrying the said arm is closed and
the other door is afterwards closed the edge of the latter door pressing upon the

page_text: inclined spring arm forces it inwards and thereby causes it to hook upon the pin fixed
in the door frame. The shutting of the second door thus fixes the previously closed
door. I prefer to fix the spring arm on the bottom edge of the door and the more
firmly to secure the upper part of the door in its closed position I let into the edge of
the door near its top a spring bolt with a rounded end. When the door is closed the
rounded end of the bolt snaps into a recess in the top of the door frame and
temporarily fixes the top of the door. In order to prevent the withdrawal of the end
of the bolt from its recess when the other door is closed, I employ a spring slide
working horizontally which slide when pushed inwards locks the said bolt. The
protruding end of this slide is inclined so that when the second door is shut it
presses inwards the said slide and effects the locking of the spring bolt. When the
second door is opened the spring bolt on the other door is unlocked and by gentle
pressure the door can be opened, the rounded end of the bolt passing out of the recess
in the door frame.
The positions of the two fastenings may be reversed and they may either be used
combined or separately.
The application of my improvements to doors other than wardrobe doors differs
in no essential respect from their application to wardrobe doors as herein before
described.
I will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying Drawings the
manner in which my invention is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in front elevation a portion of a double door to which fastenings
constructed according to my invention are applied; Figure 2 represents a plan of the
same (the door frame being removed) showing the spring bolt and Figures 3 and 4
represent horizontal sections of the double door, closed and open, showing the spring
arm; Figure 5 represents in side elevation and plan of upper side; Figure 6 in
section and Figure 7 in front elevation the spring bolt detached from the door drawn
to a larger scale: Figure 8 represents a modification of the spring bolt; Figure 9
represents in plan the spring arm in its normal or unfastened position; Figure 10 the
same in plan and end elevation in its fastened position in combination with the pin or
projection on the door frame and Figure 11 a side elevation of Figure 10; Figure 12
represents in plan and side elevation the fixing plate carrying the curved pin or
projection with which the spring arm engages detached. Figures 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12
are drawn to the same scale as Figures 5, 6, and 7.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in the several Figures of the
Drawings.
a, b are the two doors and c the frame to which the said doors are hinged; d is the
spring arm affixed to the vertical edge of the door a near the bottom thereof. The
said arm d turns on the pin d² carried by the fixing plate d³ and by means of a
spring d acting on the heel of the said arm d it is pressed when at liberty to move
into the inclined position with respect to the edge of the door represented in Figure 4.
The free end of the arm d is hooked and when in its normal position projects from the
edge of the door as seen in Figure 4. On the lower part of the door frame c the
plate e carrying the rounded pin or projection f is fixed. With this pin or pro-
jection f on the door frame the hooked end of the arm d is made to engage to fix the
door a in its closed position. The spring arm dis acted upon for fixing the door a by
the other door b. That is, after the door a carrying the spring arm d has been closed
the other door b is closed the edge of the last named door b pressing upon the inclined
spring arm d (Figure 4) forces it inwards and thereby causes it to hook upon the pin
or projection on the door frame c as represented in Figure 3. The shutting of the
second door thus fixes the previously closed door a.
On opening the door b, the arm d by the action of its spring is disengaged from the
pin or projection f and takes the inclined position represented in Figure 4, thus
unfastening the bottom of the door a.
I will now describe the spring bolt fixed on the upper part of the door a for the
purpose of holding the said door firmly in its closed position; g is the spring bolt let

page_text: nto the vertical edge of the door a. The said spring bolt g has a rounded end for
snapping into the recess h in the striking plate on the top of the door frame c (see
Figure 1). In order to prevent the withdrawal of the end of the bolt g on the door a
from the recess in the door frame c when the other door bis closed the plate carrying
the spring bolt g has pinned to it a spring slide k working horizontally.
The free inner end 7 of the spring slide k is turned at right angles and when the
said slide is pushed inwards its turned end passes under the bottom of the spring
bolt g and prevents the said bolt being withdrawn as illustrated in Figures 1 and 5.
The spring slide k is pressed inwards by the action of the door b upon the rounded
projection which in its normal position projects through the hole in the bolt plate
and permits of the descent of the spring bolt as illustrated in Figure 6. When the
door a is closed the rounded end of the spring bolt g snaps into the recess in the
striking plate i at the top of the door frame and temporarily fixes the top of
the door a. The door bis next closed. The door a is thereby fixed at bottom
by the spring arm d as herein before described. As the door b is closed it acts upon
the protruding rounded projection on the spring slide k and presses the said slide
inwards and locks the spring bolt g as represented in Figures 1 and 5. On opening
the door the spring slide k takes the position represented in Figure 6 thereby
unlocking the spring bolt g and by gentle pressure the door a can be opened the
rounded end of the spring bolt 9 passing out of the recess in the striking plate i on
the door frame.
Instead of the rounded projection on the spring slide k for the door 6 to act
against, a bevilled projection m as represented in Figure 8 may be used on the spring
slide k.
The spring bolt g may be placed at the bottom edge of the door a instead of at the
top edge and the spring arm d may be placed at the top of the door a instead of at
the bottom as represented in the drawings.
Although I have represented the two fastenings combined together yet they
may be used separately for fastening the double doors of wardrobes and other double
doors.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my invention
and the manner in which the same is to be performed I declare that I claim as
my invention of "Improvements in fastenings for the double doors of wardrobes and
other double doors."
First. A fastening affixed to the bottom or top of the vertical edge of one of the
double doors consisting essentially of a spring arm having a hooked end which hooked
end is made to hook upon or engage with a curved pin or projection on the door frame
so as to fix the door carrying the said spring arm in its closed position by the closing
of the other door substantially as herein before described and illustrated in the
accompanying Drawings.
Secondly. A fastening affixed to the bottom or top of the vertical edge of one of
the double doors consisting essentially of a spring bolt having a rounded end in com-
bination with a spring locking slide the said spring locking slide being pushed
inwards by the closing of the other door and thereby made to lock the said spring
bolt substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying
Drawings.
Dated this Twenty first day of May 1887