IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR STOPPERING BOTTLES
Year: 1877

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake,
& Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, for the Invention of
"IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR STOPPERING BOTTLES." A communication from
abroad by Messieurs Agnel and Co., of Paris, France.
Sealed the 11th January 1878, and dated the 31st July 1877.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 31st July 1877.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR STOPPERING BOTTLES."
[A communication from abroad by Messieurs Agnel and Co., of Paris, France.]
This Invention relates to an improved bottle-stoppering apparatus, and is
applicable to all kinds of bottles used for perfumery, medicine, or the like, and from
which it is desirable to pour the liquid contained therein drop by drop, or in very
small quantities at a time, and I have given the said apparatus the name of the
stiligoutte."
56
Hitherto in order to obtain this result many methods of and apparatus for stop-
pering bottles have been devised, which have generally consisted in the application
of a screw or a small stopper provided to close a capillary opening, but all these
methods and apparatus have this feature, that the actual closing device, either a
cork, screw, stem, or other like article, is made detachable from the other part of the
apparatus, so that in order to open the capillary orifice it is necessary first to take
off or remove the actual closing piece, then to put it in its place again upon or in the
apparatus in order to close the bottle. Such apparatus are therefore found to be
troublesome in use and difficult to manipulate.
The object of this Invention is to provide a stoppering apparatus in which the
actual stopper or closing piece, although moveable relatively to the whole apparatus
always remains attached to the same, and requires only a rotary movement to be
given to it, either in one direction or the other, in order to open or close the aper-

page_text: ture from whence the liquid escapes. By turning the said stopper more or less the
said aperture is more or less uncovered, so that the flow of the liquid can be regu-
lated at will, that is to say, the liquid may be caused to issue in drops, with a
considerable or small interval between them, or in a very fine jet, as may be
desired.
The said Invention is carried into practice as follows, that is to say :-I provide a
tube which traverses the whole length of a piece of cork, wood, or other suitable
material fitting in the neck of the bottle, and which then forms the outlet of the
bottle. The said tube is screwed at its outside end, that is to say, the end which
projects from the said piece to receive by screwing thereon a cap or cover tapped to
fit the screw, which thus becomes the closing device, and is constructed as follows,
that is to say :-
The said cap or cover has in its centre and at the side presented to the interior of
the said tube either a conical projection designed to penetrate into the projecting
orifice of the said tube, or a washer of leather, tin, or pewter, or other suitable
material, which will press upon the orifice of the tube, and thus form a seat in such
a manner as to close the tube hermetically, and at each side of the said conical pro-
jection, or of the said washer, two or more holes are pierced, which provide a
communication between the interior of the said cap or cover and the exterior.
It will therefore be seen that by turning in one direction or the other the said
cap or cover, it is either screwed or unscrewed upon the extremity of the tube upon
which it fits, and the said conical projection or the washer causes the orifice of the
tube to be hermetically closed; or the same is opened more or less to form an
annular aperture of greater or less dimensions for the flow of the liquid from the
bottle, the said liquid then entering the cap or cover, whence it escapes by the
openings.
The said cap or cover is retained in its place on the end of the tube by means of
a flange which bears against a shoulder or projection on the said tube.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
31st July 1878.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. " IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR STOPPERING
BOTTLES." A communication from abroad by Messieurs Agnel and Co., of Paris,
France.
This Invention relates to an improved bottle-stoppering apparatus, and is
applicable to all kinds of bottles used for perfumery, medicine, or the like, and from
which it is desirable to pour the liquid contained therein drop by drop, or in very
small quantities, to which apparatus I have given the name of the "stiligoutte."
To obtain this result numerous devices for stoppering bottles have been already
devised, generally consisting of or comprising a screw or a small stopper provided
to close a capillary opening, but all of these devices have this feature, that the
actual closing part, which is either a cork, screw, stem, or other like article, is made
detachable from the other part of the device, so that in order to open the capillary
orifice it is necessary first to take off or remove the said closing part, then to put it
in its place again upon or in the device in order to close the bottle. Such devices
or apparatus are therefore found to be troublesome, inconvenient, and difficult to
manipulate.
The object of this Invention is to provide a stoppering apparatus in which the
actual stopper or closing piece, although moveable relatively to the whole apparatus,
always remains attached to the same, and requires only a rotary movement to be
given to it in one or another direction in order to open or close the aperture whence
the liquid escapes. By turning the said stopper more or less the said aperture is
more or less uncovered, so that the flow of the liquid can be regulated at will, that
is to say, the liquid may be caused to issue in drops, with any desired intermission
or interval between them, or in a very fine jet.
The said Invention is carried into practice as follows, that is to say :-I provide a
tube which traverses the entire length of a piece of cork, wood, or other suitable
material fitting in the neck of the bottle, and which then forms the outlet of the
bottle. The said tube is screw threaded at its outer extremity, which projects from
the said piece, and has screwed thereon a suitably tapped cap or cover, which thus
becomes the closing device, and is constructed as follows, that is to say:-
The said cap or cover has in the centre of its inner side either a conical projection
designed to enter the projecting orifice of the said tube, or a washer of leather, tin,
pewter, or other suitable material, which will press upon the surface surrounding the
orifice of the tube and thus form a seat in such a manner as to close the tube her-
metically, and at each side of the said conical projection, or of the said washer, two
or more holes are pierced which provide a communication between the interior of the
said cap or cover, and the exterior.
It will therefore be seen that by turning in one or the other direction the said
cap or cover, it is either screwed or unscrewed upon the extremity of the tube upon
which it fits, and the said conical projection or the washer closes hermetically the
orifice of the tube or opens the same more or less to form an annular aperture of
greater or lesser dimensions for the flow of the liquid from the bottle, the said liquid
then entering the cap or cover, whence it escapes by the openings.
The said cap or cover is retained in its place on the end of the tube by means of
a flange, which projects under a shoulder or projection on the said tube.
In order that my Invention may be fully understood, I have shewn, as examples
thereof, in the accompanying Drawing various forms of stoppering apparatus con-
structed according to the said Invention.
Figure 1 shews a bottle furnished with the said apparatus, filled with a conical
projection.

page_text: Figure 2 shews on an enlarged scale a vertical section of the said apparatus in its
closed position.
Figure 3 is a top view of the same.
Figure 4 is a section similar to that shown in Figure 2, but shewing the apparatus
in its open position.
In all of these Figures the same letters indicate the same parts.
a is a bottle, which may be of any desired form and dimensions; b shews the
liquid, essence, or other contents of the said bottle; c is the cork, or other material
forming or fitted in the bottle neck; d is the tube passing through the centre of the
same; e is the screwed head of the tubed; fis the screwed cover or cap fitted upon
the screw-threaded head e, and which is formed with the conical projection g and
the discharge holes h; i is the plate forming the seat of the apparatus, and covering
the top or outer surface of the stopper c; it may rest upon the edges of the bottle
neck as shown in the Drawing, or may surround the said neck.
Figure is a vertical section shewing the said Invention or "stiligoutte"
apparatus, with a cover or cap, which has a washer of leather or other material in
place of a cone, the said apparatus being shown closed.
Figure 6 is a transverse section of the aforesaid cover or cap on the line 1, 2,
Figure 5.
Figure 7 is a vertical section of the said apparatus shewing the same open; d is
a tube passing through the cork or other material in the neck of the bottle; e is
the screwed head of this tube; f is the cover or cap, with discharging holes h; j is
the washer of leather, lead, pewter, or other suitable material held upon the interior
face of the cap by a central screw k. This washer is substituted for the projection
g above described, and presses against the seat formed by the extremity of the head
e to effect the closing of the apparatus.
It will be understood that the withdrawing of the said closing washer, more or
Jess from its seat, causes, in the same manner as the aforesaid conical stopper, a
more or less rapid flow of the liquid. The said washer has this advantage over the
conc, that it facilitates fitting up or manufacture of the said stoppering apparatus.
Figure 8 shews in vertical section a modification which may be made in the
arrangement of the said washer. This modification consists in forming in the
interior of the cover or cap fa cavity or depression m for the reception of the afore-
said leather or other washer, and in providing the bottom of the cover or cap with
a projection n, which passes through the said washer, and being rivetted serves to
retain the same in place.
Figure 9 shews in the two positions, that is to say, open and closed, a further
modification of the apparatus illustrated in Figure 8.
Instead of providing for the escape of the liquid by the two orifices or holes / in
the capf, the latter is surmounted by a second cap f¹, forming a chamber above the
first cap, and presenting a central passage or aperture h' for the escape of the liquid
which enters the said chamber by the orifices ; j is the closing washer of leather,
india rubber, or other suitable material, fitted within a depression or cavity in the
cap f, and held in place by the projection n, cast or otherwise formed on the said
cap, and rivetted over the washer.
4
Figure 10 shews in the two positions (open and closed) an arrangement wherein
the closing piece or part of the stopper, instead of being a cap, is an interior piece 1
surrounded by the piece 2, and so fitted therein it may be screwed and unscrewed for
opening and closing by the washer 3 the orifice of the tube 4, which passes through
the cork or other material in the neck of the bottle. The piece 1 is centrally per- 5
forated or formed with a channel 5 to permit the flow of the liquid in the direction
of the arrows.
Figure 11 shews in the said two positions a modification of the apparatus shewn
in Figure 10. This modification consists in extending the piece or part 1 throughout
the length of the tube 4, which passes through the cork in the bottle neck, and in 5
forming in the lower extremity of the said part, two or more lateral openings 6,
which permit communication between the interior of the bottle and the channel 5;

page_text: also in arranging at this lower extremity the closing washer 3, so that instead of
pressing upon the upper part this washer presses upon the lower orifice of the said
tube 4, which thus serves only as a sheath. As will be seen in this arrangement,
contrary to the others above described, the opening is effected by screwing down
the movable part 1, and the closing by unscrewing the same, the openings 6 in the
said part being covered by the tube 4 by unscrewing, and uncovered by the
screwing down of the said part.
In my improved stoppering apparatus the flanging of the closing piece or part is
not indispensable, as, for effecting the opening and closing, this piece need not be
fully unscrewed.
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondents, and the manner of performing the same, I wish it understood
that I claim, the stoppering apparatus above described, and whereof I have shown
various forms or arrangements, and which is characterized by a closing piece or part
not detachable from the body of the said apparatus, and to which is imparted by a
turning or rotative movement, an adjusting movement more or less prolonged for
causing a more or less rapid flow of the liquid from the bottle.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Thirty-first day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-eight.
M DADT TTTA