IMPROVEMENTS IN LOCKS FOR PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION FOR RAILWAY AND OTHER CARRIAGES
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Matthias Hart, of the Firm of Hobbs, Hart,
and Company, of 76, Cheapside, in the City of London, Lock and
Safe Manufacturers, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN LOCKS FOR
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Matthias Hart at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
the 12th August 1870.
on
I, JOHN MATTHIAS HART, of the Firm of Hobbs, Hart, and Company,
of 76, Cheapside, in the City of London, Lock and Safe Manufacturers,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
LOCKS FOR RAILWAY AND OTHER CARRIAGES," to be as follows:-
The improvements relate to means for more effectually retaining the
doors or other enclosures of railway and other carriages.
For this purpose I form the lock in the following manner :-1st, the
case I construct as described in the Specification of Letters Patent

page_text: granted to me, No. 1399, bearing date May 6th, 1869, and therefore I lay
no claim to that and other part or parts separately considered; 2nd, I
form on the bolt of the lock or boss thereof surrounding the axis,
recesses, notches, or grooves to receive a corresponding projection or
projections from a lever which works from a centre or axis of motion,
such lever being retained in its place by means of a flat or other suitable
spring pressing against it, or by a helical spring so placed as to resist
the lever faceways, and thus retain the lever in position; 3rd, I apply in
the front or head plate of the lock a sliding disc or other plate, which
plate gives facility for a renewal of a helical spring, and for closing the
opening thereto. When the sliding plate is shifted the space provided
for the purpose is open to view and for insertion or removal of the
spring. By closing the plate the spring when inserted is retained in
its place. In place of this closing plate being slided it may be applied
by screwing or otherwise. 4th. A walled passage or channel is formed
in the body of the lock to retain the helical spring in position, or a pin
and socket may be applied for that purpose.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Matthias Hart in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 11th February 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
MATTHIAS HART, of the Firm of Hobbs, Hart, and Company, of 76,
Cheapside, in the City of London, Lock and Safe Manufacturers, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twelfth day of August, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-
fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said John Matthias Hart, Her special.
licence that I, the said John Matthias Hart, my executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said John Matthias Hart,
my exécutors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during
the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use,

page_text: exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN LOCKS FOR RAILWAY AND OTHER CARRIAGES," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said John Matthias Hart, my executors or
administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, 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 Office within
six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said
Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Matthias Hart, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention; and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in
and by the following statement thereof, that is to say :-
The improvements relate to means for more effectually retaining the
doors or other enclosures of railway and other carriages.
1
For this purpose I form the lock in the following manner: —1st, the
case I construct as described in the Specification of Letters Patent
granted to me, No. 1399, bearing date May 6th, 1869, and therefore I
lay no claim to that and other part or parts separately considered.
2nd, I form on the bolt of the lock or boss thereof surrounding the axis,
recesses, notches, or grooves to receive a corresponding projection or
projections from a lever which works from a centre or axis of motion,
such lever being retained in its place by means a helical spring so
placed as to resist the lever faceways, and thus retain the lever in
position. 3rd, I apply in the front or head plate of the lock a sliding
plate, which plate gives facility for a renewal of the spring, and for
closing the opening thereto. When the sliding plate is shifted the space
provided for the purpose is open to view, and for insertion or removal of
the spring. By closing the plate the spring when inserted is retained in
its place. In place of this closing plate being slided it may be applied
by screwing or otherwise. 4th, a walled passage or channel is formed
in the body of the lock to retain the helical spring in position, or a pin
and socket may be applied for that purpose.
But that the Invention may be fully understood I will, by the aid of
the accompanying Drawings, proceed to describe means I adopt in
carrying the same into effect.

page_text: DESCRIPTION OF THE Drawings.
Figure 1 shows a front view, Figure 2 an external side view, and
Figure 3 a back view of a lock arranged according to my improvements;
Figure 4 is an internal side view of the same obtained by the face place
being shown partly in section, and by one of the 'side plates of the case
being removed; Figures 5 and 6 show separate views of one portion of
the case having the front plate attached thereto; Figures 7 and 8 show
the other plate of the case; Figures 9, 10, and 11 show parts separately.
In each of these Figures the same letters apply to corresponding parts.
a is the face plate of the lock, and a¹ is that portion of the case
containing the works which is formed with or is immediately connected
to the face plate a, and 6 is the other portion of such case. This portion
-b is connected to the portion a³ of the case by the overlapping of the
ends thereof over the ends a² of the part a¹, and the passing there-
through of screws c, c, in manner such as described in the former
-Specification above referred to, and is not claimed as a part of the
present Invention. d is the bolt of the lock which is supported to turn
in the parts a¹ and 6 in the ordinary way. The boss or curved portion
of the bolt around the centre spindle or keyhole d¹ is formed with
V recesses, notches, or grooves d³, d³, each of which is adapted to receive
a corresponding projection e¹ formed on one end of a lever e, which lever
is supported to move on an axis e², and at the other end it is borne
against by the helical spring f, with a tendency to bear the end with the
projection e¹ towards the boss of the bolt d. When the bolt is turned
outwards for locking (as shown by red dotted lines in Figure 4); the
projection e¹ from the lever e will rest in the notch d' of the bolt d, and
when the bolt d is turned inwards or "unlocked" the projection e¹ will
rest in the notch d³ of the bolt d. The helical spring of rests between
one end a² of the lock and the wall or projection a³, which thereby forms
a chamber for that spring, and the spring bears at one end against the
sliding plate g, and at the other end of it against one end of the lever e
over a pin e¹ to that lever. By this means in case of fracture of the
spring the parts thereof will be prevented from passing into the body of
the lock, and by means of the opening in the face plate opposite to the
chamber thus formed for the spring the spring may be readily removed
or replaced. This opening in the face plate a of the lock, as shown, is
closed by the sliding plate g, and when closed it is held in position by

page_text: the screw at that end used to retain the lock in the door, and when so
closed the sliding plate 9 serves, as stated, as a bearing for one end of
the spring f. The plate closing the opening in the face plate for the
passage of the spring may be applied by screwing in placing of employing
a sliding plate. By these means great facility is afforded for removing
or replacing the spring without the necessity for removing the lock from
its mortice, thereby effecting great saving of time.
Having thus described my Invention and means which I adopt in
carrying the same into effect, I would have it understood that I do not
confine myself to the precise form of the parts shown and described, as
these may be varied; but what I do claim is, the adaptation or com-
bination of parts for operating on the bolts of locks of railway and other
carriages for the purpose of holding such bolts in their respective
positions, substantially as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Matthias Hart, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Eleventh day of February, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one.