IMPROVEMENTS IN SPECTACLE TEMPLES
Year: 1887

page_text: I, ROBERT BRADLEY, Jr., of Providence, in the County of Providence, and State
of Rhode Island, United States of America, Jeweler, do hereby declaro the nature
of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SPECTACLE TEMPLES," and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming
part of this Specification :-
--
This invention relates to spectacles, which consist in general of a frame for holding
the lenses, and a temple or side bar hinged at the respective ends of the frame; the
temples serving to clamp upon the sides of the head of the wearer with sufficient
pressure to maintain the spectacles in wearing position. In order to perform their
functions the temples have to have a slight resiliency, but as this amounts to little or
nothing in a gold or silver temple, the same are for this reason inefficient. On the
other hand the steel temples are objectionable for many reasons and it therefore
becomes desirable to combine the steel or base metal with a precious metal, as gold,
and thereby secure the advantages resulting from the use of each metal.
One object of my invention is to construct temples of steel or resilient metals and
precious metals combined, whereby a more efficient and durable article may be
produced.
Another object of my invention is to secure the temple to the spectacle-frame in a
manner whereby the tomper of the steel in the temple may not be drawn.
Another object of my invention is to provide a neat and strong hinge for the temple
and frame, and further to entirely or if desired to partially conceal the steel core of the
temple, by the external cover or sheathing of precious metal.
To the above purposes my invention consists in the certain combinations, set forth
at the end of this specification, and comprising the following mechanical features and
methods, namely; a temple composed of a resilient base metal core and a precious
metal sheathing; a sleove of precious metal formed from a slotted and grooved blank
and secured to a hinge-leaf and adapted to receive the temple; the method of
covering the core of the temple with a metallic sheathing, by encasing the core in a
tubular sheathing and pressing the sheathing into close contact with the core, by
drawing, rolling or otherwise; the method of securing a steel or base metal temple to

page_text: the spectacle frame, without drawing the temper of the temple and also of covering
the end of the same.
In order that my invention may be fully understood I have illustrated in the
accompanying drawings and will proceed to describe the best forins and methods
thereof, so far devised by me, with the understanding that the invention admits of
various modifications.
Figure 1 represents a side view of a base metal core, rectangular in cross-section,
and which is partially covered by an encasing tubular sheathing of precious metal,
before being drawn out.
Figure 2 represents a longitudinal central sectional view of Figuro 1.
Figure 3 represents a longitudinal central sectional view of the core and sheathing,
after the latter has been drawn out or extended in length and made to adhere closely
to the core of the temple; one end of the sheathing being prolonged beyond the end
of the core for a purpose hereinafter explained.
Figures 4 and 5 represent enlarged cross-sectional views of Figures 1 and 3
respectively.
Figure 6 represents a view of one of my improved temples hinged to a portion of
a spectacle frame, by means of my novel sleeve piece.
Figure 7 represents an enlarged sectional view of my novel sleeve piece having
the outer end open to expose the end of the temple core, which is shown in part and
is surrounded by a precious metal sheathing and is inserted in the sleeve, to which is
secured a hinge-leaf. The section being taken in a plane normal to the axis of the
hinge leaf.
Figure 8 represents a sectional view taken on line 8-8 in Figure 7, and shows the
sleeve piece before it is finally swaged into finished condition.
Figure 9 represents a sectional view similar to Figure 8, and shows the sleeve piece
after being swaged.
Figure 10 represents a similar sectional view to that shown in Figure 7, and shows
the sleeve closed at the outer end so as to entirely conceal the core. The dotted lines
represent the positions of the free ends of the strip or blank from which the sleeve is
made, and at one stage of the formation of the sleeve..
Figure 11 represents the strip or blank from which the sleeve piece is formed.
In the said drawings like numbers of reference designate corresponding parts
throughout.
Referring to the drawings the number 13 designates a portion of an ordinary
spectacle framo, for holding the lenses, and 14 represents my improved composito
form of temple, which is in part secured to the frame 13 by means of the peculiar
sleeve piece 15.
core.
The temple or side-bar 14 is composed of a core 16 made of a resilient base metal
preferably steel, which I encase and entirely conceal by the sheathing 17, as follows;
I insert the steel core 16, which is rectangular in cross-section, within the tubular
sheathing 17, which is made of precious metal, preferably gold and loosely fits the
I then press the sheathing or draw the same through dies so as to cause it to
be drawn out and forced into close contact with the core. This drawing out of the
sheathing 17 will clongate the same, as shown at the right hand of Figure 3, which
elongation I flatten and swage up tightly so as to form a solid flattened end 18
designed to bear upon the sido of the head, in using the spectacles.
The cross-sectional views in Figures 4 and 5 represent respectively the loosely fitting
sheathing and core before the former is pressed into snug adherence with the core,
and after the same has been so drawn into form.
By virtue of constructing the temple 14 out of a steel or other base metal core and
a gold sheathing, I secure a very solidly formed composite bar or temple which
possesses all the advantages of both the solid steel bars and solid gold bars, with the
disadvantages of neither, since the rusting of the steel is obviated, likewise the defect
of the non-resiliency of the solid gold temple is avoided.
In order to secure the temple to the spectacle frame 13 in a neat and durable
manner and in order to prevent the bad result of drawing the temper from the steel

page_text: temple, I have devised a novel sleeve piece 15, which is shown in blank form in
Figure 11. This sleeve is made from a flat strip, which is provided with a longitudinal
central groove 19, and with the respective transverse slots 20 and 21, which extend
from the outside or back of the blank into the bottom of the slot 19. The blank of
the sleeve is first bent into the position of the dotted lines, as shown in Figure 10,
with the central portion curved, as at 22. The end of the temple is then inserted in
the sleeve through the slot 21 and is introduced into the groove 19 and is entered
well within the sleeve, and then the free ends of the sleeve blank are closed over on
to the exposed side of the temple, which then lies within the same as shown in
Figure 8.
After this is effected the sleeve is swaged firmly so as to assume the form
shown in Figure 9, and thus the strip like blank is pressed into a solid sleeve.
Figure 7 the sleeve 15 is shown forined with the slot 20, through which the end of
the steel temple core 16 may be seen, and this facility for inspecting the steel core
may be adopted if desired. On the other hand in order to conceal entirely the steel
core 16, the slot 20 is to bo omitted as shown in Figure 10.
In
Just before the temple is introduced into the partially finished sleevo 15, the hinge-
leaf 23 is soldered to the concave face 22 of the sleeve. In this way the heat
necessary to accomplish the soldering is prevented from in anywise affecting the
temper of the metal of the temple, which as before stated is secured in the sleeve after
the hinge-leaf 23 is soldered.
The hinge-leaf 23 is formed with an eye 24, which is adapted to receive the hinge-
pin 25, Figure 6, by means of which the temple is secured to the frame 13.
It will thus bo readily seen that by my improved composite temple and the method
of constructing the same, and also the novel sleeve piece and the method of mounting
the same in position, I am enabled to make a very superior spectacle temple and moans
for securing the same to the spectacle frame.
.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is;
Claim 1. A spectacle temple or side-bar consisting in the combination, as herein-
before set forth, with a core of base metal, of a sheathing of precious metal formed
over the core, substantially as herein described.
2. A spectacle temple consisting in the combination, as hereinbefore set forth, with
a metallic core, as steel, of a sheathing of precious metal, as gold, formed over the
core, substantially as herein described.
3. The herein before described method of making a spectacle temple, the method
consisting in encasing a core in a metallic sheathing, then forcing the sheathing into
close contact with the core, by drawing, rolling or otherwise, then finishing the ends
of the sheathing, substantially as herein described.
4. The combination, as hereinbefore set forth, with a spectacle frame and a temple,
of a sleeve adapted to receive the temple and to be secured to the frame, substantially
as herein described.
5. The combination, as hereinbefore set forth, with a temple, of a hinge-leaf and a
sleeve soldered thereto and adapted to receive the temple, substantially as herein
described.
6. The combination, as hereinbefore set forth, with a frame and a temple, of a sleeve
constructed from a slotted strip formed up into shape and adapted to receive the temple,
substantially as herein described.
7. The combination, as heroin before set forth, with a temple and a hinge-sleeve
constructed from a grooved and slotted strip formed into shape, substantially as herein
described.
8. The herein described method of securing a steel or steel-cored temple to a hinge-
leaf, without drawing the temper of the steel, the method consisting in securing the
hinge-leaf to the hinge-sleeve, then inserting the temple in the sleeve and swaging the
latter into shape, substantially as herein described.
9. The composite temple 14, consisting in the combination of the resilient base

page_text: metal core 16, with the precious metal sheathing 17 formed into close adherence
therewith, and prolonged beyond the end of the core as at 18, substantially as heroin-
before set forth.
10. The combination with a binge-leaf, of the temple and the' sleeve-piece 15
adapted to receive and secure the temple in position, substantially as hereinbefore set
forth.
11. The combination with a temple, of a sleeve 15 formed from a strip pro-
vided with the groove 19 and the slots 20 and 21, substantially as hereinbefore
described.
12. The combination with a temple, of a sleeve 15 formed from a strip like slotted
blank, bent and swaged into shape, substantially as hereinbefore described.
Dated this 14th day or October A.D. 1007.
ROBERT BRADLEY, JR.
Haseltine, Lake & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London,
Agents for the Applicant.
Signed in presence of
JOSEPH A. MILLER, Jr.,
Providence, R.I., U.S.A.,
Solicitor of Patents.