Improvements in Bedsteads, Sofas, and Chairs.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Feb., 1893
Complete Specification Left, 20th Nov., 1893-Accepted, 23rd Dec., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Bedsteads, Sofas, and Chairs.
I WILLIAM WILBERFORCE, of St. Albans, Bognor, in the County of Sussex,
Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
According to this invention I secure springs to the lower ends of the legs of
bedsteads sofas and chairs in such a way that they form continuations of the
legs and more especially in the case of chairs give a certain freedom of movement
which makes the chairs very agreeable to sit on.
I use coiled wire springs-one end of the coil I secure to a plate or socket which
is to be secured to the end of a chair leg and the other end is firmly fixed to a foot
made of wood inetal or other suitable material.
The ends of the coiled springs may conveniently be secured to the plate and foot
by forming the last coil at each end of the spring of smaller diameter than the
other coils and holding them to the plate or foot by washers or clamping plates
and screw bolts or rivets, or all the coils of the springs may be of the same diameter
and their ends held in contracting metal holders, or they may be held by bending
down strips of metal over them or in other suitable ways.
The feet on the lower ends of the springs may be fitted with rollers or ball
castors.
Dated this 21st day of Febr 1802
CARPMAEL & Co.,
Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Bedsteads, Sofas, and Chairs.
I, WILLIAM WILBERFORCE, of St. Albans, Bognor in the County of Sussex,
Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature cf this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :-
According to this invention I secure springs to the lower ends of the legs or
bases of bedsteads, sofas and chairs in such a way that they form continuations of
the legs or bases and more especially in the case of chairs give a certain freedom
of movement which makes the chairs very agreeable to sit on.
I use coiled wire springs-one end of the coil I secure to a plate or socket which
is to be secured to the end of a chair leg and the other end is firmly fixed to a foot
made of wood, metal or other suitable material.
The ends of the coiled springs may conveniently be secured to the plate and foot
by forming the last coils or loops at the ends of the spring of smaller diameter than
the other coils and holding them to the plate or foot by washers or clamping plates
and screw bolts or rivets, or all the coils of the springs may be of the same
diameter and their ends held in contracting metal holders, or they may be held by
bending down strips of metal over them or in other suitable ways.
The drawings annexed shew spring extensions for the lower ends of the legs of
chairs constructed in the manner I prefer.
Figures 1 and 2 shew side and plan views of a spring extension euitable for the
front legs of chairs and Figures 3 and 4 shew similar views of a spring extension
suitable for the back legs of chairs. As will be seen I prefer to make the springs
for the front legs longer than the springs for the back legs so as to give them
greater flexibility, and also to raise the front part of the chair slightly. In the

page_text: construction shewn in the drawings the springs are formed at each of their two
ends with a coil of smaller diameter than the other coils but concentric with them.
The coil at one end is secured to a metal plate a which has holes formed through it
to allow of its being affixed by screws to the bottom of a chair leg. The coil at
the other end is secured to a metal foot which is to rest on the floor.
To secure the ends of the coils to the metal plates, each plate is formed with a
screw stem c projecting from it at the centre to be passed through one end coil of
the spring and then have a clamping nut d screwed on to its end-the metal plate a
may
have the end of a spring thus secured to it after it has been affixed by screws
to the end of a chair leg. The metal plates b which form feet at the lower end of
the springs may either be flat or slightly curved or rounded as desired--they may
also if desired be faced on the under side with wood or other comparatively soft
material. In order to raise the front part of the chair above the back part and
give it a still more considerable tilt back than that given by the front springs
being longer than the back ones, the feet on the front legs can be higher than
those on the back legs-the springs may also if desired be enclosed in a flexible
cylindrical casing of leather or other material.
In Figures 5 and 6 I have shewn another convenient way of attaching the upper
ends of the coiled springs to the leg of a chair.
In this construction the plate a is formed with an upward extension through
which extension holes are formed to allow of its being secured by screws to the
side of a chair leg.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
:-
A coiled wire spring extension for the legs or bases of chairs sofas and the like
constructed substantially as hereinbefore described.
Dated this 16th day of November 1893.
WILLIAM WILBERFORCE.